


Communication Lines

by misiley



Category: Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six (Video Games)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-20
Updated: 2020-11-22
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:40:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 43
Words: 95,891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26569708
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misiley/pseuds/misiley
Summary: A little dive into someone from Mute's past, a friend he thought was dead. They catch up at the Rainbow Headquarters in Greece and some of the team gets to meet this mysterious civilian.-----Explicit chapters are LABELLED in the TITLE. I also include an additional warning at the top of the chapter. These chapters are written in a way that they will not disrupt the flow of the story if you skip them.I try to keep characters as close to their Ubi bios as I can. They're all diverse, complex, and I want to keep it true to the best of my ability.
Relationships: Mark "Mute" Chandar/Original Character(s)
Comments: 55
Kudos: 49





	1. Observant

**Chapter One - Observant**

**Cast:**

Civilian

Håvard “Ace” Haugland

Grace “Dokkaebi” Nam

Maxim “Kapkan” Basuda

Jack “Pulse” Estrada

Tina Lin “Frost” Tsang

**Location:**

Mount Erymanthos, Greece

Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

She was out of breath, and the cut on her arm was starting to really ache with the dirt and small pebbles ground into it. Her scraped knee was weaker now for sure. She brushed the muddied hair from her brow and trudged on as quietly as she could. That steep incline was more of a climb and she had slid back a number of times.  _ Almost out of here. Almost safe! _

Another few bangs and echoes sounded from the cave system behind her. She needed to hurry. She was starting to panic.  _ Was the exit this way? Or was it one more right before the left? _ She stopped to try and recall, trying to look ahead down both paths.

Crunch.

She whipped around and there was a tall figure there.

“You look lost. Why don’t we find the rest of the team together!”

A quick bright smile shone from the face of the Norwegian man in front of her. The spot light from his head illuminated the tunnel when he clicked it on. She squinted but did not reply. A woman in a beanie came up behind him with a rifle in her hands. She looked at the man before realizing that he was talking to someone else. She turned to the wounded muddy woman in the path. The injured woman drew a knife from her sleeve. A small one, but present.

The Asian woman called out, “You don’t need that... We are not going to hurt you.” She gripped her rifle tighter.

The Nordic man called out, bargaining, “I am an EMT. I can help bandage your wounds if you disarm yourself. I promise! I’ll even throw in an autograph if you behave!”

“Ace, not helping.” The armed woman muttered.

“Lighten up, Dokk!” Ace tapped his headlamp, “She might be able to help us piece together what happened here! What is your name, miss?”

Dokkaebi rolled her eyes. The unnamed woman remained still, and silent, analyzing both of the people in front of her. They were both armed, heavily. She wouldn’t be able to take them on with just her knife. It was barely a letter opener. 

“Miss?” Ace asked again while Dokkaebi whispered into her radio.

She tried to recall the path again, glancing over her left shoulder. She looked up the wall to a tiny sliver of light, not enough to illuminate the area. Not big enough for her to get out. Would she even be fast enough to get away? They said she might be useful. She hated being “useful”. Her knife was knocked from her hand from behind and she was put into a quick wrist lock.  _ Damn these echoing tunnels. I can’t hear anything.  _

“No worry. I have her. We cleared out the remaining of the White Masks in the cave. We should go.” A thick accent sounded from over her right shoulder.  _ Russian? Some country from around there. _ He let go of her wrist and grabbed her arm firmly above the elbow instead.

Another hand was placed on her left shoulder. A more familiar American accent from a man, agreeing with the Russian. “Let’s go.” They start to lead her down the path she came from, and she resisted. The American man looked to her and the Russian looked to him and then to her, still holding her by the upper arm. She winced from the pain and a small sound escaped her mouth.

Håvard steps forward, “Let me see your injuries. I will make it feel better.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a compact medical kit and a bottle of water. He waved the two men holding her away. He held them up to show her before he cracked open the bottle and soaked some gauze.  _ If I wasn’t outnumbered, I wouldn’t let you touch me. _ Tenderly, he started to inspect and clean the wound. It stung, but the woman was more intent on listening to the others. She ignored the medical care, despite wanting nothing more than to pull away.

The other four people were standing together and whispering. They were very armed. Pistols, rifles, knives, and who knows what else.

“Has she said anything?”

“No.”

“Might be shock. Scared.”

“Possibly. She is injured…”

“And not to mention what she may have seen… what they did to her.”

Another woman emerged from the dark tunnels. She is wearing a familiar flag… Canada.  _ Home. Was home. _

She winces again as Håvard cleaned her wound. He wrapped some bandages around her forearm cut and tied it snug. Not much he could do for her knee in here. God, she hated strangers touching her. Why did he have to do that?

“That will hold you until we get back!” He said with a grin. “Now about that autogr…”

“Let’s move out,” the American man cut off the one called Ace.

“Agree,” replied the Russian.

_ What is this dynamic? Who are these people? It doesn’t matter. _ At least they treated her better than the last. She’ll keep being observant until she can figure out another escape. Maybe once her arm heals, it’ll be easier then.

She followed. She didn’t want to, but she followed.

A large dark vehicle sat haphazardly in the dirt road leading to the mountain. She was led to one of the back doors and was quickly, but thoroughly, searched. No more weapons. No cellphone, no wallet, no keys. Not much of anything really. The American man opened the door and helped her inside. She watched as he went back to talk to the other people. She sat there, motionless, hoping they would forget about her. The last woman to arrive, the Canadian, walked to the vehicle and entered from the opposite side.

“It’s okay, you’re going to be okay. We have you. You’re safe now.”

_ I doubt it _ , she thought and remained as emotionless as possible.

“We will take you back to the city, get you cleaned up. And then we’ll talk more. It’s not too far, actually.” The woman paused, concerned about not getting a response. “They call me Frost… What is your name?”

Silence.

The four others approached the vehicle and clambered in. The injured woman clicked on a seatbelt without a word. She won’t be talking now or any time soon, that’s for sure.

The vehicle pulls away. Who knows where these people are taking her. Some city. She stared out the window, attempting to map her way from the mountain to this… Whatever place that they’re going to. The towering mountain behind her would have been pretty if it weren’t for what was inside.

_ Oh well. _ She’ll maybe see its beauty in the future. She reminded herself that she needs to let go of trauma. It doesn't serve her.

The people in the vehicle seemed to want to talk but unsure on how to with this silent passenger. It was a sparse conversation for the few hours back to the building. Especially after the Russian fell asleep in the front passenger sleep and snored softly.

They passed buildings but never close enough to read the writing. Highways, side streets, rural areas, urban areas. She didn’t recognize any of it.

They pulled up to a garage door alongside an unlabelled facility.  _ My favourite. Yay. _ There were a variety of vehicles inside: some military, some police, and some civilian. Again, she saw numerous countries and languages. It was strange. She would think it would be another branch of the White Masks with how international this is, but… the White Masks drop their nationality when they join.  _ Were they smugglers? Traffickers? It would make sense. These types of vehicles would be easy to get across borders without many questions. _

The vehicle rolled to a stop and Frost got out. The woman unbelted herself and slid to the side where Frost was waiting. She stepped out and stood awkwardly, timidly. A few members of the group exchanged glances when they stepped out of the vehicle.

Ace tapped his badge and opened the door leading into the building, motioning for her to enter. He smiled. She did not.

The Russian man gripped her by the upper arm again and led her inside. They are followed by the other people whispering “Was it wise to bring her here?” The interior of the facility was not brand new, but was still taken care of. It looked like it was once somewhere important, but was retrofitted for this… this… headquarters? Office? They turned the corner, right, after they passed a single intersection and passed a windowed room.  _ Noted. _

They opened a door and brought her inside. “Have a seats,” the Russian man said while gesturing to a table and chairs in the centre of the room. Along one side of the small room, mirrors. A small window with a metal grate opposite to that. The man left, the door clicked shut behind him.

She strolled over, checked to see if it locked behind him. It did. She walked the perimeter of the room, counter-clockwise, her fingers gliding along the painted cinder block walls. She reached the window and looked outside. A short field and then a tree line. Sprinting distance. The field had some lines painted onto it.  _ A sports field maybe? _ It might be a longer sprint than she thought, then. She laced her fingers into the metal grate and pushed slightly.  _ Sturdy. _ She continued her circle. Now at the mirrors, she held one of her fingernails up to the glass.  _ No gap. One way mirror. _ She’s being watched.

She looked up to the corners of the room.  _ Cameras. Definitely watched. Likely recorded too. _ She didn’t like that.

Not much she can do about it now. She sat at the table. And waited.


	2. Window

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pulse talks to this woman and fails to get much out of her. Mute steps in.

**Chapter Two - Window**

**Cast:**

Civilian

Gustave “Doc” Kateb

Jack “Pulse” Estrada

Jordan “Thermite” Trace

Eliza “Ash” Cohen

Tina Lin “Frost” Tsang

Mark R. "Mute" Chandar

**Location:**

Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

A man entered, one that she hasn’t seen before. Medium brown skin, greying at the temples, deep brown eyes, angular face. He was wearing a white long coat and carried a bag. Weirdest interrogator she’s ever seen.

“Hello, my name is Doctor Gustave Kateb. I hear that you have some injuries that need tending.” He gave a small smile. Seemed kind.  _ I don’t trust it. _ He set his bag down on the table and pulled out some clean water, bandages, sterilized instruments, and creams.   
  
“Thank you, doctor, but I will not be needing medical care today,” she said, talking out loud for the first time in any of their presences. Her fingers were interlaced on the table surface. Her shoulders weren’t tense. Her gaze straight ahead, unfocused but attentive.   
  
“The blood through your bandages says otherwise,” he continued, unfazed. “Please, I assure you that it will heal faster with care.”

“Thank you, but no,” she replied curtly. “You may leave the materials here and I will tend to myself once I get into my accommodations.”   
  
Gustave paused. Sighing deeply, he took his bag into his left hand. “Please let me or anyone else know if you change your mind. I will always be happy to help.” He turned and moved towards the door. Knocking twice, someone from the hallway opened the door for him and he exited.   
  
The woman turned to face the objects on the table, moving only her eyes to scan them. Her gaze returned to straight ahead. She remained like this for the next eight minutes until the door clicked open again. She didn’t react.   
  
“I hear you spoke to Gustave!” The familiar American man cried out, closing the door behind him. “That’s an interesting development.”   
  
He walked over to the chair opposite to her and sat down. His bald head was no longer muddy, and his clothes were changed. He smelled good.  _ I’m glad at least one of us got a shower. _ He set down two unopened bottles of water and some papers. He then mimicked her pose of relaxed shoulders and interlaced fingers. “Now, will you tell me your name?”

Silence.

“See, the thing is, is that you’re an anomaly,” he continued. “We didn’t expect someone like you in those caves. We only knew about the White Masks and… ah, other things but no civilians. So I would like to know your side of things… What were you doing in those caves?”   
  
Silence.   
  
“Were you taken there? Voluntarily or against your will... I’m not here to discriminate.”   
  
She huffed and a small smirk appeared.

“Were you just caught up in something unintentionally? Didn’t know how to get out of it until it was too late? Were you there to join?”

She kept the smirk. Slightly shaking her head in amusement, rolling her eyes.   
  
He leaned forward. “I just want to know so that we can figure out how to proceed here.” He raised his eyebrows.   
  
Silence.   
  
She looked out the window from her seat and sighed. Her face was expressionless again.   
  
“I can spend all day talking to you here until you open up to me,” he said. “You’re stressed, but you’ve been here before. Not this building, but you know… talking to someone you don’t know in a room like this. You’re calm from experience, I think.”   
  
He leaned back in his chair. “Your eyes are flickering. What are you thinking?”   
  
Silence.   
  
“I don-” He began.   
  
“What is your name?” The woman asked suddenly.   
  
The man leaned towards her again, pleased. “Jack.”   
  
“Let me guess... Jack Smith?” She continued, turning to face him.  _ Always with a fake name. _   
  
“Estrada,” he corrected her. She blinked slowly, staring.   
  
“Do you know  _ why _ I’m stressed… Jack?” She asked him with a hint of a patronizing tone. “You seem to think that you know a lot.”  _ You shouldn’t be challenging him like this… Back off! This is dangerous! _

“You tell me,” Jack replied, gesturing with open hands.   
  
“Well... Jack, I was asleep and pulled from my bed by people with masks and a lot of guns. I was put into a vehicle with no explanation and taken to an unknown location where I was interrogated for hours and then abused. I escaped,” she paused. “That is until a group of people with masks and a lot of guns put me into a vehicle with no explanation and took me to an unknown location where I am now being interrogated. I assume abuse comes next.”   
  
He looked at her.   
  
“My deepest apologies for being…” She scowled. “Hesitant.”   
  
“You seem calm for going through such a traumatic experience,” he said offhandedly.   
  
“Not my first rodeo… Jack.” She shot back.   
  
“Why do you say that?” He retorted.   
  
Silence. She turned to face the window again, her expression melting into neutrality.   
  
“Listen, I know this is a strange event for you, but you can trust us. We’re not going to hurt you.”   
  
“Right. Because I know you like an old friend,” she muttered quietly.   
  
Jack reached into a pocket on his jacket and pulled out a black leather folder. He flipped it open and exposed an FBI badge with SWAT insignia. She glanced over, glanced up at him, and then back to the window.   
  
“I’m not American. I wouldn’t know a real from a fake,” she muttered again.   
  
Jack sighed and closed the badge cover and slid it back into his pocket. He picked up his pen and looked at her. “So where are you from then?”   
  
Silence.   
  
_ It’s going to be a long day… _   
  
\-----   
  
“Mark! Good to see you, you crazy smart kid, you!” Jordan bounded up while Mark was preparing a tea in the kitchen. “Listen, I have an idea for a detonator and I kinda… don’t want Elena to know about it? You know what I mean? Can you take a look?”   
  
“If it’s not electrical,” Mark replied dully. “The answer is no.”   
  
“I know! But c’mon! You can figure it out! I know you can.” Jordan lightly punched Mark on the shoulder, knocking some of the cream he was pouring onto the counter. Mark looked up at him blankly.   
  
“Alright, alright. I’ll run it by someone else.” Jordan dashed out the door. Mark began to wipe up the spilled cream when Jordan popped his head back in the door frame. “Oh, and they have a civilian in room 3B. She’s kind of cute, but apparently a tough nut. Might want to avoid the area.”

  
Jordan disappeared again with a wink and a laugh. Mark sighed and stirred his tea. It was already a long day, but a civilian here means something interesting is happening for sure. He likes to know what’s going on at all times. It comes with the territory of being an intelligence officer after all.   
  
He stepped quietly down the hall leading to the interrogation rooms. He tapped on the observation room door before opening it inwards. Inside was Eliza, Tina, and Gustave. They all turned to him as he opened the door. They quickly turned back to the room before them. Mark could hear a voice through the intercom. Jack was asking questions to silence. Mark sipped his tea and looked through the window.   
  
He saw a woman standing in front of the window looking outside, her back to the mirror. She was mid-height, messy dark short hair. Her slacks were torn and muddy, and he couldn’t tell what colour her shoes were from all the caked on mud. She wore a thicker cardigan with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows. She had bandages on her left forearm. Skin tone was not pale, but not tan. A well rounded boring average white woman.   
  
“I need you to give me something,” Jack asked.   
  
“I don’t like talking to people that I can’t see,” The woman replied, turning to face him at the table. She gestured to the mirror and looked over to it. She seemed to look directly at Mark.   
  
Mark choked on his tea. Gustave looked over to him, concerned. Tina and Eliza also turn to him. “Well, I’ll be damned…   
  
“...I know her.”


	3. Questioning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We learn a little more about our guest and how Mark knows her.

**Chapter Three - Questioning**

**Cast:**

Civilian

Eliza “Ash” Cohen

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Jack “Pulse” Estrada

Tina Lin “Frost” Tsang

Gustave “Doc” Kateb

Gilles “Montagne” Touré   
  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

“What do you mean ‘I know her’?” Eliza asked suddenly.   
  
“I mean what I bloody well said,” Mark replied. “I know her… from a long time ago.” He stood up and abandoned his tea on the table in the small room. He exited and went to the door immediately to the right. He opened it without warning and walked up to Jack and the desk.   
  
The woman was facing the window again.   
  
“What do you need?” Jack asked Mark quietly.   
  
“Anna,” Mark called out.   
  
The woman froze. She turned quickly to face the new person in the room. He was tall, his brown skin illuminated with the afternoon sun from the window. He had messy dark hair and well kept stubble. His medium brown eyes stared her down. He was older now, but she saw the resemblance.   
  
She was stunned. Very quietly, she asked, “Mark?”

“It’s good to see that you’re still alive,” Mark shot back.   
  
The woman now identified as Anna whisked towards him. Jack stood up but wasn’t fast enough to stop her. She planted her face right into the centre of Mark’s chest, wrapping her arms around his torso. He took a step back with his arms half raised, clearly not anticipating that reaction. He hesitated but settled on resting one of his hands between her shoulder blades, and the other on the back of her head. She squeezed him a little tighter at this.   
  
They held each other for a moment before Anna pulled away.   
  
Mark looked down at her and said “I need you to be honest with us. We’re on your side.”   
  
“What is this place? Who… what is this… this… organization?” Anna spluttered back.   
  
“This is Team Rainbow. There are almost 60 of us now. We are from several countries and we are all specialists working in counter-terrorism.” Mark said rather matter-of-factly. Anna looked down thoughtfully and nodded.   
  
“For you, I’ll talk,” She started. “But I still don’t like talking to people that I can’t see. Can we move to a room with no mirrors? No cameras?”   
  
“Give us a minute. I’ll see what I can make happen.” Mark looked at Jack and nodded towards the exit. They walked towards the door but someone cracked it open before they even reached it to knock and they left. Anna was now alone in the room. She wrapped her arms around herself and muttered under her breath, suddenly looking panicked.   
  
\----   
  
Eliza looked out the mirror at Anna, eyes narrowed and arms crossed. Gustave had a furrowed brow.

  
Mark, Jack, and Tina were standing in the doorway after exiting the interview room.   
  
“Let’s move her to 7C. We’ll all fit,” Mark said.   
  
“No, I want this conversation recorded,” Eliza stated. “I want to be able to present it to Harry and have his opinion when he gets back. I don’t think that we should move her.”   
  
“Ash, we don’t work together often but I need you to listen to me on this,” Mark pleaded. “This one is worth taking seriously. She’s worth having on our side.”   
  
“How do you know her exactly?” Eliza turned to face him straight on. She’s never been one to avoid confrontation. “Because it sounded to me like you said ‘from a long time ago’. You can’t assume that she hasn’t changed from when you knew her back then.”   
  
“That’s reasonable,” Mark rebutted. “So we can bring on some extra people. Armed. She can’t outrun a bullet.”

“I want her handcuffed,” Eliza uncrossed her arms. “And I want it voice recorded so Harry can at least listen.”   
  
“Not handcuffed and voice recorded,” Mark bargained, knowing which option she was more adamant on.   
  
“Fine,” Eliza relented, wanting this over with. “7C.” Mark stepped past Tina and opened the door. Anna was standing looking out the window again, arms still wrapped around herself.   
  
“Anna, we’re going to a conference room,” Mark explained. “There’s no cameras, but the conversation will be voice recorded. It’s imperative that the Head of Team Rainbow knows what the situation is.”   
  
“I don’t want to be taken out of context. I don’t want the recording altered or manipulated. I don’t want it to come back and bite me,” Anna sounded icy.   
  
“We want Harry to listen to it just as you said it… We don’t want it altered either.” Mark assured her. She turned to face him, a concerned expression on her face. She nodded hesitantly.

“What about the stuff?” Anna motioned to the medical supplies still on the table.   
  
“There’s more, don’t worry,” Mark replied and moved to the door. Anna followed. Jack was waiting for them outside and the trio went down another few halls to a dark door. Mark opened it for her and she stepped inside. A red haired woman with a braid, the woman she knew as Frost, and Gustave were already inside at the far end of a long table.   
  
The red haired woman eyed her suspiciously. “We will be recording this interaction for our records. It will be presented to the Head of the Team for his consideration and analysis. I need you to agree to this before we begin.”   
  
“I agree on the terms that the audio recording will not be altered in any way,” Anna stared back.   
  
“Absolutely,” The woman set down a recording device and took a seat. “We just need to wait on one other person before we begin. He should be here soon.”   
  
They all waited in silence for only a few minutes before a massive figure appeared in the doorway and entered the room. Anna could barely see any of him past all the navy and black armour and the massive shield.   
  
“Thank you for joining, Montagne,” Eliza nodded to him. He nodded back. She clicked on the recording device. “Okay, now let’s talk.”   
  
“Where would you like for me to begin?” Anna didn’t like this woman and took a seat opposite to her. “Because I would like to begin with your names… and then I shall offer mine.”   
  
“We are not the ones needing to explain anything,” Eliza shot back.   
  


“True,” Anna said. “But it would be more professional.”   
  
“I am Ash, this is Frost, Pulse but he told you his name,” Eliza didn’t sound impressed. “Doc, but you know him as Doctor Kateb. Montagne is here to make sure that things don’t get out of hand. And Mark. That’s all of us. Your turn.”   
  
“My name is Annaliese Audette,” Anna explained. “Anna to make things easier.”

She paused, looking down at her hands on the table top. Mark was standing behind her, Montagne between them and the rest of the group.   
  
“I know Mark from when we were kids... We were in a social organization for… ‘gifted’ children. Mark nor I really took to any of the other kids. We were both creative thinkers so of course that made us drawn to each other. We talked often over various chat rooms over the years and met up during the annual in-person social event. Camps, conventions, and such. After some time, he got a job out of secondary school and contact waned. He excelled with his math and aptitude for computers and electronics and my... talents took me down a different route.”   
  
“Where are you from, to start,” Eliza interrupted looking down at her notes. “And then enlighten us on what these talents of yours are.”   
  
“I am from a small town in Ontario, Canada. Elora. Not much there besides some natural beauty and quaint shops. It’s definitely become more touristy in the past decade I’ve heard,” Anna explained. “My talents… They… ah...”   
  
Anna shook her head and looked down. “It makes me desirable to the undesirables. These talents have had me kidnapped dozens of times over so I live my life on the run… I faked my own death for my family so that they don’t try to seek me out. I’ve cut ties with everyone I’ve known for their safety. I’ve been to more countries than I can count. I don’t like to talk about them… It exposes me.”   
  
“Who kidnapped you?” Eliza redirected.   
  
“All kinds of people. Various criminal organizations, mafia, White Masks most recently… Psh, even some governments ‘hired’ me,” Anna shook her head sadly. “I would be very wealthy if I weren’t so damn honest.”   
  
“What are your talents?” Eliza repeated.   
  
“She is a script replicator,” Mark stepped in. “She can copy nearly anyone’s handwriting.”   
  
“It makes it easy to commit large scale fraud, theft, extortion.” Anna continued. “It can be used to transfer money through banks or to redirect a shipment or to allow entry into a building. It’s most dangerous when they try to get me to imitate various world leaders.   
  
“There was a moment in time that I was under the control of a group of thugs paid off by some government, they never specified,” Anna waved her hand dismissively. “They wanted me to imitate the writing of the Russian president threatening the US president. They wanted to write that he was going to attack government buildings, to torture the presidential family, et cetera, et cetera…   
  
“I didn’t want to do that,” Anna sighed. “This isn’t what I wanted out of these… these supposed gifts.”   
  
Anna looked down at her hands. Mark put one of his on her shoulder.   
  
“Did you write the letter,” Eliza asked urgently.   
  
“Of course not,” Anna looked up to her sternly. “This was well over a year ago now. They had a gun to my head and I needed to think fast. I wedged my hand between the bars on the window and…” She jolted her arm. “I broke three of my fingers and cracked a bone in my wrist. I almost blacked out… They didn’t like that. They beat me thoroughly and tortured me brutally for the next month or so. I only escaped because I lost so much weight that I could finally squeeze out the window…”

“Jesus,” Tina muttered. Gustave was looking at her hand. He couldn’t tell it had been broken, but an xray or an examination would correct that. He stood and walked past his French teammate to the chair next to Anna.   
  
“May I sit?” He asked, already in the process of sitting down. “I would like to see your hand, if you permit.”   
  
Anna scrunched up her face. Mark gave her shoulder a squeeze. “Let him. He’s a good doctor and a better man.”   
  
Anna exhaled and offered her right hand to him. Gustave took it tenderly and started feeling the finger bones.

“Another time, I was being forced to forge a document to release a warehouse of valuable antiques to a group of smugglers. I added in a ‘tell’ so that they knew it was fraudulent. I was shot twice for that…”

Gustave looked up at her, still holding her hand. Anna looked back at him, rolled her eyes, and pulled down the collar of her shirt to reveal a pitted scar just below her collarbone on her shoulder. “The other is near my hip. There are also other scars from knife wounds, burns, and so forth.”

“I’ve seriously considered blinding myself to prevent this further, but I fear that they might just kill me at that point,” Anna said sadly. Gustave completed his examination of her hand.

“Definitely has been broken,” he stated. “The bones didn’t heal properly. They are misaligned.” He stood and returned to his spot near Eliza. Eliza whispered to him, and he nodded in response. Eliza turned back to Anna.

“Why were you with the White Masks,” Eliza tilted her head.

“I presume for the same reason that the others wanted me,” Anna replied disdainfully. “Help to commit crimes?”

“You said that you’ve been to numerous countries, why?” Eliza leaned in. “How did you fund these trips?”

“I kept moving so that I would be harder to track down. Oftentimes I would just go to the nearest airport and take the next flight out. Or I would take long bus tours between countries and then just… disappear from the tour. That way I wouldn’t really know where I was going either.”

Montagne shifted on his feet and Anna flicked her eyes over to him. After seeing so many cultures worldwide, she sometimes wondered how we were all the same species. So many different skin tones, heights, features, colours of hair and eyes, different languages. It’s one of the things she loved most about the world. For example, this man is tall and also wide but Anna herself was easily a foot shorter than he was and was fairly thin but it suited her frame.

“My finances came mainly from… well… fraud,” Anna returned to the question. “I would work small jobs in credit card call centres and would complete my quotas by making fake people sign up for cards. I would use those cards and pay them off with my paycheque until it was time to move on. I would keep using the cards until I officially left the area. I would never get hired under my actual name so I was virtually untraceable by the company. They would try to go after these fake card holders first anyways. I also worked cash jobs sometimes with fake paperwork. Sometimes manual labour. I did live off my savings for a while.”

“Savings from what?” Ash was looking more relaxed now.

“I started out with honest work. Soon after graduation, I worked in several museums doing restoration work, and making duplicates of things so that the public could handle them and look closer without handling the actual artifact. I don’t know how my skills were found out. I think it was a shady art dealer when I was with the Royal Ontario Museum... I went to inspect a painting with one of the directors and I think she talked me up a little too much. We determined it was a fake and we left without contract.

“I mean, when I was with the social, the organization was very particular with who they shared our skills with. They helped us apply into advanced schooling, find work, but they needed to find good reputable companies and schools that would work with… children. We were children at that time.” Anna explained, getting tired. She’s been at this facility for a few hours and she is still coated in now-dry mud. She picked some of the clods out of her hair.

“I think that’s enough for today,” Mark interjected. “Anna could use some rest, food, and medical care.”

“I will happily tend to my own injuries,” Anna replied. “Mostly, I would appreciate a shower.”

Eliza sighed. “We aren't finished here.”

“What more do you want?” Mark demanded coolly.

“Proof,” Eliza eyed him.


	4. Proof

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little bit of skill is presented on the behalf of Anna

**Chapter Four - Proof**

_(For my friend AlphaTango because I didn't post yesterday. I'll try to get a chapter out per day! I already have about 15 chapters typed...)_

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette

Eliza “Ash” Cohen   
Mark R “Mute” Chandar   
Jack “Pulse” Estrada

Tina Lin “Frost” Tsang

Gustave “Doc” Kateb

Gilles “Montagne” Touré   
  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

“What proof do you need?” Anna asked Eliza from across the conference room table. “I don’t recommend you showing me your handwriting.”

“How do you want to give us proof?” Eliza leaned in.

Anna looked uncomfortable. “Give me a paper and pen and I can demonstrate…”

The writing instruments were quickly supplied and Anna took the pen and began to write:

_ To whom it may concern, _

_ I, Jack Estrada, am hereby giving my official notice to the Federal Bureau of Investigation to terminate my employment as of four weeks from now. I have been honored to serve for as long as I have and the Bureau has been good to me. _

_ With some deep soul searching, I have discovered that policing is not my true desire in the world. With taking some local classes, I have determined that my call in life is clowning. I will begin my tenure at the county fair later this summer. I hope the Bureau recognizes this opportunity for me and allows me to pursue my dreams of making others smile. _

_ Please forward any questions or concerns to my clowning idol, Skippy. _

_ Sincerely, _

_ Jack Estrada _

Anna paused. Then at the top of the page, she scribed:

_ For legal purposes, this letter is an example only. _

Anna slid the paper back across to the group. “I saw Jack’s writing when he was taking notes earlier.”

Ash read the letter silently and looked up, unimpressed. She passed the paper to Jack. Tina slid over and stifled a laugh as she read it over Jack’s shoulder.

“It looks like my writing alright,” Jack sighed, amused. “She’s good.”

On another page, she was already writing  _ the quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog _ over and over in several different handwritings with names listed beside them. One of which was Mark’s from a decade ago. Others included some government officials, athletes, family members. She even forged several famous signatures along the margins.

“I don’t know why I’m like this,” Anna looked defeated as she slid the paper across.

Ash picked it up and looked it over. “We’ll end it here for tonight then. There is a lot to review. Gustave, do you have anyone in the private medical ward right now?”

“ _ Non _ ,” Gustave replied.

“Take her there where she can be monitored. She can rest for now,” Eliza looked back down. She continued dismissively, “make sure to bandage her up.”

Gustave stood and walked to the door to open it. Tina was rereading the letter and Jack was looking thoughtful yet relaxed in his chair. Eliza was scrutinizing the second page that Anna wrote. Montagne stepped aside to let Mark and Anna pass but accompanied the three people to the medical ward.   
  
After a quick tour, Anna was allowed into the small bathroom and given fresh clothes and a towel. She expressed her gratitude and disappeared into the room. Gustave came back to talk to Mark. Montagne was standing silently at the door.   
  
“What happened to her?” Gustave asked, worried.   
  
“I didn’t know any of that,” Mark muttered. “I need to talk to her alone after she gets settled in.”   
  
Gustave took a long deep breath. “Please convince her to let me bandage her wounds. I want to make sure there will be no lasting damage.”   
  
“I can’t promise,” Mark scrunched up his mouth.   
  
They stood silently for a moment listening to the shower run. Montagne called over to Gustave in French and nodded to someone out of sight. Gustave went over and exited the room to talk to whoever it was. Mark glanced up to the window into the hall but Gustave went right past it. He would go to listen in but staying with Anna was too important right now.   
  
“Gilles, I can handle things,” Mark addressed the large man by the door.   
  
“ _ Non _ , I will stay,” Gilles replied. “Until Gustave comes back.”

\-----

A longer than typical shower later, Anna emerged. She was looking and feeling better but still wasn’t fully comfortable with being here. She was now in a pale blue hospital gown on top and wearing not-quite-soft cream coloured pajama looking pants. All of her muddied clothes were in a plastic bag that she took from the pocket of the gown.   
  
Mark was leaning against one of the medical beds and stood up properly. Anna turned her head, not anticipating the movement.   
  
“‘Ey,” He said, awkwardly. He held his hand up to a door across the room. “The private room is this way.”

Mark walked her over and went inside. He closed the door behind them while Anna put her bag of clothes on the chair at the foot of the bed.   
  
“I thought you were dead,” Mark said quietly. Anna chuckled. “I thought I would never see you again.”   
  
“You shouldn’t have ever seen me again… Mark, listen,” Anna sat on the edge of the bed and gripped the mattress. “I need to leave. I’m putting you all in danger.”   
  
“We can handle it,” Mark said without a hint of doubt. They stared at each other. “Let Gustave patch you up, yeh? He’ll be able to monitor you over the next couple of days and…”   
  
“I don’t plan on staying for a couple of days…” Anna looked down guilty. She clicked her tongue against her teeth. “To be honest, I was trying to plan my escape the entire time that I was in the possession of… what did you call this? Team…?”   
  
“Rainbow.”   
“Rainbow… Either way I shouldn’t be here.”

“I’m not about to let you leave.”   
“So now I’m  _ your _ hostage?”   
“You’re not a hostage.”   
“So I’m under arrest?”   
“No, Anna… It…”   
“So if I’m not a hostage and I’m not under arrest, am I free to go?”   
  
Mark stared at her, frustrated. This is the first time in about fifteen years that they’ve talked and about eight since he believed she was dead. She was one of his most consistent friends and he needed more information. He finally noticed a scar peeking out from under one of the gown’s sleeves. Mark stepped towards her and lifted the edge of the sleeve with a finger.   
  
“I got that one from squeezing through a chain link fence,” Anna rolled up the sleeve to her shoulder cap. There were several parallel scars. She released the sleeve and pulled up the bottom hem of the gown to the bottom of her rib cage. Another indented scar - the other bullet wound from the story before. She had other shiny patches of skin along her ribs, stomach, and coming up from the waistband of the loose pants. She also pulled up the other sleeve to show what looked like a surgery scar along her elbow on the same arm that currently had an open wound. Lastly, she lifted up her hair behind one of her ears to reveal a 10cm long scar leading into her hair.   
  
“There’s more on my legs too, but I don’t feel like bending over to show you.” Anna half grinned at that joke but it fell away quickly.   
  
Mark was still close to her and it seemed like he was going to brush her hair behind her ear but stopped himself when he heard Gustave returning with another operator. He instead went to the foot of the bed and picked up her bag of muddy clothes. His face was deep in thought.   
  
“Please let Gustave patch you up,” Mark pleaded once more. “He’s a good doctor. Saved me a bunch of times out in the field. In return, I’ll wash your clothes. We have laundry here and I have a little money left on my card.”   
  
“... I really don’t want to... For  _ you _ , I will.” Anna said finally.    
  


“Thank you.”   
  
Mark nodded appreciatively and left the room. From the open door, Anna could hear Gustave talking to a rather bubbly sounding German man. Blonde with a longer face. Both he and the doctor turned to Mark as he approached them. The door closed and Anna could only hear muffled talking now. She quickly moved toward the door and felt no lock.  _ Damn. _

She went back to the bed and climbed on top of it. She drew her knees up to her chest and hugged them.

There was a knock at the door. “It’s me, Annaliese. Gustave.”   
  


Anna braced herself for the uncomfortable examination. She knew there would be questions. She knew there would be answers she couldn’t give. She’s been abused by doctors before and she learned how to patch herself up pretty well in an attempt to avoid them. 

  
“Come in.”


	5. Emotional

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna spends the night in the hospital bay and starts trusting a few people.

**Chapter Five - Emotional**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Gustave “Doc” Kateb

Håvard “Ace” Haugland

Elena María “Mira” Álvarez

Harry “Six” Pandey   
  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Anna was staring out the window from her spot on the bed. Gustave left hours ago. The examination itself was short. Mark must have talked to him since he came in, looked at, treated, and bandaged her arm, then looked at, treated, and bandaged her knee.

Gustave asked if she was hungry and offered her options for a meal. He also asked about any food allergies and other dietary restrictions. Anna said no to those and chose a meal. In half an hour, food was brought to her by a friendly Greek man that explained he was one of the cooks. He wished her well and then he closed the door behind him when he left. She took her time disassembling the meal and inspecting each morsel before she ate it. Force of habit. She did appreciate that the bottle of water was sealed, though. It’s harder to poison. Still, she meticulously went over the entire plastic outside of the bottle to check for any imperfections. She gave it a squeeze to see if there were any pin pricks. Nothing. She smelled the lip of the bottle before taking her first mouthful. It was refreshing.   
  
Her plate sat empty on her nightstand and she was just thinking over the day. She was exhausted earlier during the interrogation but now, restless. She hasn’t slept well in about ten years and being in a new space like this wasn’t helping. The majority of the lights were out in the ward and she hasn’t heard people noises in a while now.   
  
She set the back of her head against the wall behind her. Quietly, she started singing to herself.   
  
_ Thought I found a way _

_ Thought I found a way, yeah _

_ But you never go away _

_ So I guess I gotta stay now _

_ Oh, I hope someday I'll make it out of here _

_ Even if it takes all night or a hundred years _

_ Need a place to hide, but I can't find one near _

_ Wanna feel alive, outside I can't fight my fear _

_ Isn't it lovely, all alone? _

_ Heart made of glass, my mind of stone _

_ Tear me to pieces, skin to bone _

_ Hello, welcome home _

_ Walkin' out of town _

_ Lookin' for a better place _

_ Something's on my mind _

_ Always in my head space _

_ But I know someday I'll make it out of here _

_ Even if it takes all night or a hundred years _

_ Need a place to hide, but I can't find one near _

_ Wanna feel alive, outside I can't fight my fear _

_ Isn't it lovely, all alone? _

_ Heart made of glass, my mind of stone _

_ Tear me to pieces, skin and bone _

_ Hello, welcome home _

The Billie Eilish song always seemed to hit just the right note when she was trapped. Her stomach was turning. Anxiety. The security lights outside the building flicked on. Moonrise. Finally night. She needed to try and sleep.   
  
She slid herself down in the bed and threw a blanket over her. She already hid her knife from dinner in the gap between the frame and the mattress just in case. Her eyes closed, but it was a long time before she was actually asleep.   
  
——-

In the morning, the room was unrecognizable. The bed was now on the opposite side of the room, away from the window and up against the door. Anna was laying head first at the foot of the bed. The sheets were scattered around the room. A knock on the door sounded and Anna stirred. She hadn’t been asleep long it seemed. The person tried to open the door but it butted against the side of the bed.

“Anna?” Mark called out.

“One second!” She called back, alarmed. She jumped out of the bed and straightened the gown she wore. She unlocked the wheels on the bed and moved it back to the centre of the room. Mark cracked the door.

“Are you decent?”

“Yeah, I’m dressed.”

Mark walked in and saw the mess. “You okay?”

“Restless night,” Anna shrugged. She eyed the bag in his hands. “Are those my clothes? Thank you.”

Mark handed the bag over and quickly left so she could dress. He stood just outside the door and called through. “I’ll take you down for breakfast but Harry would like to see you this morning in his office. Eliza sent word to him about you and he came back early.”

“Who is Harry and Eliza?” Anna was in a state of partial undress. She threw her clean shirt over her head and flattened out the wrinkles. She tossed the pants to the bed to look for her socks and noticed that the rips on the pants were crudely mended.

“Harry is the Director of Rainbow,” Mark leaned against the wall. “And Eliza is the red headed Yank from yesterday. The serious one.”

“Ah,” Anna was now more or less ready. She has practiced dressing quickly just in case. She hastily fixed the positioning of the bed and scooped up the sheets and blankets from the floor and plopped them towards the footboard. She then exited the room. Mark was waiting.

“I will let you know that word has spread that you’re here,” He said coolly. “I think it was Tina and that letter you wrote about Jack.”

“Tina?”

“Frost.”

“Ah.”

“There might be some uncomfortable stares or questions, but you don’t need to answer any of them,” He continued. “We will get you some food, and take you right upstairs.”

“Lead the way…”

The walk to the dining hall was an interesting one. Lots of halls, photos, damage, too many doors to count. She was surprised that they never ran into anyone. They passed what looked like a fitness room and someone was inside running but the woman paid no mind to them. Eventually, the dining hall.

The doors swung open and it was bigger than Anna thought it would be. There were many round tables and single chairs around. Some couches over by the windows with plants between them. Tall ceiling with a concrete open stairway was in the middle leading up to a second level that wrapped around the outside of the hall. Under the partial second level was a buffet style breakfast. There were a few people filling plates and a dozen or so were already eating at tables. They looked up when Mark and her entered. He seemed to keep between her and anyone else.

They went up to the buffet area and each grabbed a plate. Some of the food she recognized, other stuff she didn’t. She took a modest meal of toast with jam, two hard boiled eggs, and some peameal bacon. One of the people at the buffet bid them a good morning with a thick accent and walked to a table with two people at it. The other was Ace.

“Good morning, lovely! You’re looking a lot better now that you’re all cleaned up!” He smiled.

“Good morning,” She replied. “Ace, was it?”

“Håvard at your service.” He said with a wink. He was cheeky, that’s for sure. “Good to hear you speaking! Op, looks like your bandages need a change. I can take care of you after food, yeah?”

“She has an appointment with Harry,” Mark said without looking up. “We need to go.”

“Aha! Maybe later then,” Håvard nodded. “I heard you travel. Have you been to Norway? I could show you photos! I’m well known there, actually.”

“As you said, maybe later.” Anna shut him down as gently as she could. Mark was finished piling food on his plate and walked between her and Håvard. She was quick to follow. They took a table far away from the others and started to eat. Again, Anna took her time to break things down methodically before eating. This didn’t escape Mark's notice. 

“It’s not poisoned,” he said while shovelling some scrambled egg into his mouth. He took the edge of his fork and broke off a piece of the tomato.

“I know.”

“You still don’t trust us.”

“I don’t trust many people.”

Mark stabbed the tomato piece and ate it.

“What is Harry like?”

“He’s a psychologist so he probes but it’s for understanding and not blackmail.”

“Good to know.”

They ate in silence for a while before a woman walked up. “May I join?”

“We’re almost done, but yes,” Mark looked up at her. “Elena, this is Annaliese. Anna, this is Elena. She is the Head of the Research and Development department here. She is also one of the operators.”

“Nice to meet you,” Anna smiled politely.

“Rumour has it that you’re old friends. Some are wondering if you’re dating. Some of us are trying to shut all that down.” Elena shrugged and grabbed her own toast. “Thought you should know.”

Anna didn’t look up but instead just raised her eyebrows. Mark shook his head.

“I hope you slept well. The medical beds aren’t that comfortable.” Elena laughed. “Do you plan on staying long? It’s unusual to have a civilian around. It would be good to get to know you.”

“Not long unfortunately,” Anna said before Mark could make a sound. “I really do appreciate everything but I should be going.”

“We’re going to discuss that with Harry after food,” Mark countered. Anna stared at him and angerly bit her toast. Elena picked up on the tension and blotted her lips with her napkin.

“I have a lot to do this morning. It was nice to meet you Annaliese,” Elena picked up her tray and joined the Mexican operator at another table. They started talking in Spanish.

“I’m not staying, I told you this!” Anna hissed.

“And I told you that I’m not allowing that.”

“Am I just going to live here then? Or what is your plan here?”

“My plan is to talk to Harry.”

“I’ve tried witness protection, Mark. I’ve tried a lot of things to keep in one place to put down roots but I get taken away or chased out. This won’t be any different.”

“We are highly trained an-“

“I don’t care. I don’t belong here. It would be a prison to me.”

Mark looked at her.

“The main reason why I haven’t blinded myself is because the damn sunsets and sunrises are too fucking beautiful. I get emotional seeing simple lives in motion - shepherds, farmers, short cobblestone walls, small but old villages that smell of fresh baked bread. I’m jealous! I love meeting people and learning about culture. These things give me a reason to live. If you lock me up somewhere to ‘protect’ me, I’ll actually go crazy.”

He listened but didn’t respond. He scooped up the last of his beans into his mouth and grabbed both plates. Anna stood with him and watched him take them over to bins to be washed and he nodded towards the exit. She followed suit.

\-----

Harry’s office was large and bright. Numerous bookshelves lined the room and corkboards were displaying photos and information from all over.   
  
Mark followed her into the room. Harry was cleaning off a small side table between two armchairs by the windows, far away from the detailed corkboards. He heard them enter and stood straight with books in his hands. “Come in, come in! Have a seat.”   
  
“I want to be a part of this, Harry.” Mark lowered his gaze.   
  
“I understand, but I would like to talk to her alone for the first bit,” Harry smiled. “I can call for you once we are ready to have you join.”   
  


Mark hesitated but nodded in understanding and left. Anna watched him go, and felt a wave of anxiety over her shoulders. Mark obeyed so quickly.  _ He must either respect or fear this man. _

“So,” Harry continued. “Annaliese Audette from Canada. Please have a seat. Would you like tea or anything? I plan on making myself a cup.”   
  
“No, thank you. We just had breakfast.” Anna sat down in one of the armchairs. It was softer than she imagined. Harry went and grabbed a mug and fashioned himself a cuppa while Anna got to look around the room a little more. Everything was… warm and natural materials. Wood, leather, paper, wool, cotton, plants… She wonders if he just likes sustainable, quality, or if it was supposed to have some deeper meaning. She got a good look at Harry himself too.   
  
Indian like Mark, but thinner. Much thinner. Anna didn’t realize how bulky everyone was until meeting another slim person here. His beard is a little scruffy, and his glasses seem to fit his face. He was wearing a t-shirt and jeans which wasn’t what she was expecting.

  
He walked towards her and sat down in the other armchair.   
  
“So, has everything been comfortable for you so far?” He asked. He took a sip of tea and crossed one ankle over the opposite knee. Anna thought before answering.


	6. Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark and Anna have some quiet conversations about what will happen next.

**Chapter Six - Plans**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Harry “Six” Pandey

Gustave “Doc” Kateb

Håvard “Ace” Haugland

Elias “Blitz” Kötz   
  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

The door to Harry’s office cracked open. Mark was sitting in the stairwell nearby and rose when it opened. Harry poked his head out and spotted him. “You may join now.”   
  
_ It’s been over two hours,  _ Mark thought. Anna was sitting askew in the armchair looking pensive. Mark grabbed the chair from the desk and joined them in a semi-circle formation. He leaned forward with his hands clasped and his elbows on his knees. “So how did it go?”   
  
“The conversation? It went well I think,” Harry smiled mildly. He brought over two mugs of tea, a refill of his own cup and one for Mark. It seems like this exchange is a regular thing. “Annaliese has enlightened me quite a bit on who she is. I have no reason to doubt anything that she told me.”   
  
Harry took a sip of his fresh cup of Early Grey. “She also mentioned that you have a plan to keep her here? I would love to hear it.”   
  
Mark gripped the cup tightly. “We need to do something to keep her safe.”   
  
“Is that our job?” Harry inquired.   
  
“Protecting everyone is our job,” Mark stated. “Anna is included in that.”   
  
“Yes, she is. But why the extra steps for her?”   
“She is being actively targeted.”   
“By who?”   
“Everyone.”   
“So how do we keep her safe from over seven billion people while still allowing her freedom?”   
“I’m accepting suggestions.”   
  
“Mark, I’m not as fragile as you think I am. You last knew me from when we were young teenagers. We’re both late twenties, you might be thirty, I don’t know. It doesn’t matter. I am not a child.” Anna said rather softly.   
  
“I’m not allowing you to disappear again.”

“I have to.”   
“You don’t.”   
“I’m not going to jeopardize your health, your safety because of me. Or anyone’s for that matter. I’m not going to allow that.”   
“I am more trained for threats than you are.”   
“You don’t know that…”   
  
Anna trailed off. She clearly didn’t mean to say those words. Mark squinted.   
  
“What does that mean?”   
  


Silence.   
  
“Answer me.”   
  
Silence.   
  
“This isn’t an interrogation, Mark.” Harry intercepted, changing the tone. “Annaliese has taken steps to ensure she is able to handle some basic combat, handle some firearms, and other things. She is being responsible. I feel the same as you that we have a duty to protect her, but she also has the right to live how she chooses. We cannot be the ones to take that freedom away.”   
  
“I refuse that.”   
  
“We have no work, space, or need for her here,” Harry shook his head. “We can send her to one of our safe houses but it’s only a matter of time before she is found out. She is not a bird to be kept in a cage. All we can do is keep tabs on her wherever she is in the world and go to her should she ever need our assistance.”   
  
“I’m not staying,” Anna said with conviction.

Mark was out numbered. After she was settled into the medical ward, he went to speak to Eliza and the group. While they agreed to want to help her, none of them seemed to think that her staying here would be a suitable solution. Eliza said that it wouldn’t be a wise use of their resources and funds to focus only on one person. Mark knew this to be true, but hoped for a different answer.   
  
“We will discuss this later during our usual session, Mark. As for now, Anna has said that her bandages are due to be changed. I trust that you will take her down to the medical bay?”   
  
“‘Course,” Mark mumbled.   
  
He and Anna stood and started to make their way to the door. Anna called out over her shoulder “thank you for the talk, Harry.”   
  


Harry waved in response.

Once outside and a short distance down the hall, Mark gently stopped her. She turned to face him.   
  
“You don’t plan on keeping contact with us, do you?”   
“... I haven’t decided.”   
“Anna, this is the only way that we can help you.”   
“I never asked for help. Your team basically kidnapped me to question me and now I have to deal with all of this. I never wanted to be here. I never should have seen you again.”   
“You think that you’re doing me a favour by running away? I can’t keep that on my mind, Anna, knowing you’re out there in some unknown state. You could be actually dead somewhere. Or being tortured.”   
  
Anna was taken aback. He’s been less talkative than she remembers. Short sentences or single words. Sometimes not answering her at all.   
  
“Shit, Anna. You were my best mate back then,” Mark spluttered. “I saw your obituary. I mourned you. With my work, I have to be picky about who I know. You’re one of the few I  _ want _ to keep contact with.”   
  
“I don’t keep a consistent phone number,” Anna looked aside. “Or email. It’s too trackable. I don’t know how Team Rainbow will be able to keep tabs on me without allowing others too as well.   
  
“Anywhere that I go, I have to change out all of my clothing, wigs, makeup, coloured contacts. Everything. I have nothing that is stable for me because of how often I need to ditch things. Everything that was mine is still lost back in those mountain caves. What I am wearing is all I have right now. This happens every couple of months. Weeks sometimes.”   
  
They heard footsteps. Mark looked down the hall and then reached into his pocket. He buzzed into a room behind them using his key card and flicked the lights on. Anna stepped in behind him and he shut the door. They moved to the far side of the room to keep talking.   
  


Anna jumped up and sat on top of a desk. She sighed deeply.   
  
“The longest that I have been stationary in the last ten years was a small village in northern Botswana. There were only about 30 people. We were able to access well water to grow food, there was some natural shade from the Chobe Forest Reserve. Animals were all around to eat. I got really close to the people there and it was very safe. Until I was found out by some war lord and he came in with his cronies and murdered everyone and burned the village to the ground.   
  
“You won’t let anything happen to me, Mark, and I believe that.” Anna looked straight at him. “That’s what scares me.”

They stayed there in silence for a moment.   
  
“We should go get those bandages changed,” Mark said finally. Anna hopped off the desk and took a step towards the door. Mark stopped her and pulled her into a tight hug, resting his chin on the top of her head. She hugged him back.   
  
“You’re never going to do this in front of someone, are you?” Anna joked.   
  
“No,” Mark replied. “Let’s go.”   
  
\-----   
  
Anna opened the door to the medical ward and Gustave was treating the German man from yesterday. Håvard was hanging around with a magazine.   
  
“Scheiß-” The German swore while a pop was heard from his shoulder. Gustave patted him on the arm and assured him it would only be a moment more. The doctor maneuvered the arm to check the flexibility and strength before letting him go.

“If you try to hit anything too hard with your shield any time soon, it’ll just pop right back out. Take it easy,” Gustave warned.

“Maybe I will bash everything! Just to get a lollipop for being a good boy when you pop it back in!” Elias joked. “Thank you, Doc. I will see you all later.”   
  
Elias headed out the door with a laugh. Ace looked up and noticed that Mark and Anna were there.   
  
“My friend! You have come to see my photos?” Håvard called out, closing his magazine.   
  
“I came for my bandages,” Anna held up her arm.   
  
Gustave was moving some instruments around but asked her to climb onto a bed. He returned with new gloves, some scissors, and fresh gauze. He snipped the knot on her previous wrappings and delicately removed them. He wiped the injury with a wet soft cloth and inspected the opening to make sure nothing was dirtied and to make sure no other steps were necessary. He was satisfied and added more antiseptic ointment, a cotton patch, and then wrapped more cotton gauze around her entire forearm. He did the same for her knee. “No additional injuries, symptoms, or concerns?”   
  
“No,” Anna said.   
  
“It’s looking good. Some regular bandage changes from here on out to keep it clean and it should be healed in a week or two.” Gustave handed her the tube of ointment and a roll of gauze. “For your travels.”   
  
“Thank you,” Anna took the items. “For everything.”   
  
“Awww… you aren’t going are you?” Håvard asked. “You should follow me. I would happily give you a shoutout on Instagram!” He pulled out his phone and sat beside Anna on the bed. He opened all his socials and started talking about them.   
  
Gustave washed his hands thoroughly after removing his gloves and walked up to Mark. “Now what?”   
  
“Not sure,” Mark replied. “I’ll keep her occupied today but she is insisting on leaving ASAP.”   
  
“You have training today,” Gustave reminded him.   
  
“I know, at the Stadium.” Mark sighed. “Maybe I’ll bring her along. I was going to try and cancel but it might be good for her to see what we can do.”

“Zero would never let you cancel.”   
“True.”   
“I’m not sure if he would let her watch either.”   
“Mmm.”   
“You should talk to him beforehand to warn him. He doesn’t like surprises.”   
“Probably smart.”   
“Or… you can let Ace keep her busy all afternoon by talking about himself.”   
“You know we don’t condone torture.”

Gustave smiled at that jab. Mark shook his head.   
  
“Anna,” Mark called out. “Let’s grab lunch.”   
  
“Oh, let me get my things!” Håvard jumped up.   
  
“No, I need your help here,” Gustave said to him. “There's training this afternoon and you know how those turn out. We need to prepare.”   
  
Håvard looked saddened. He put his phone away and promised Anna that they would finish the social media tour later that day. Anna smiled.  _ I hope not. _

Mark and Anna walked out before Håvard could say any more. Mark took them down a different path than they took to get breakfast. Anna was confused.   
  
“I thought the dining hall was this way?” She asked.   
  
“It is, but there’s another stop first,” Mark assured her. He waved for her to follow him. She had to jog to catch up. Her knee was still painful so she walked the last little distance. Mark waited patiently. “You okay?”   
  
“Knee is sore, that’s all.” Anna sounded more confident than she was. Mark nodded and kept them moving.   
  
There were a few turns, and a few more people in the hallways. They took a flight of stairs down to a fluorescent bulb lit hallway. “It’s an underground tunnel to another building,” Mark explained. “It’s still under construction but I want you to see it while it’s still empty.”   
  
“Empty? Why empty?”   
“Gustave heard you sing last night and mentioned it to me when I dropped off your clothes this morning.”   
“Ah...”   
“It made me think about how much you sang when you were younger.”   
  
The ascended the stairs at the opposite end of the tunnel. To the left, freshly renovated hallway, to the right were plastic sheets. Mark reached up and swept them to the side allowing Anna to enter. As she took some steps, the echo of the huge room reverberated through her chest.   
  
“Wow,” She breathed. Her single word came back to her at least twice.   
  
“Sing,” Mark suggested, as he half sat on a counter getting installed. The echoes seemed to agree and egg her on.   
  
She paused, thinking of a song.   
  
_ I remember tears streaming down your face when I said I'll never let you go _

_ When all those shadows almost killed your light _

She paused again, listening to the reverb.

_ I remember you said don't leave me here alone _

_ But all that's dead and gone and passed tonight _

_ Just close your eyes, the sun is going down _

_ You'll be alright, no one can hurt you now _

_ Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound _

_ Don't you dare look out your window, darling everything's on fire _

_ The war outside our door keeps raging on _

_ Hold onto this lullaby even when the music’s gone, gone _

_ Just close your eyes, the sun is going down _

_ You'll be alright, no one can hurt you now _

_ Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound _

_ Oooh, oooh, la la… _

_ Oooh, oooh, la la… _

_ Just close your eyes, you'll be alright _

_ Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound _

  
The sound faded out of the room, leaving her breathless.   
  
“Beautiful,” Mark gave a half smile.   
  
“Can I do one more?”   
“Later. I have training after lunch. I need to talk to the instructor to see if you can sit in on it.”   
“What kind of training?”   
“Practical.”   
“...ok.”   
“Let’s grab some food.”


	7. Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna witnesses a little training between the operators in the Arena.

**Chapter Seven - Training**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette   
Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Sam “Zero” Fisher

Harry “Six” Pandey

Meghan J. “Valkyrie” Castellano 

César Ruiz “Goyo” Hernández

Max “Mozzie” Goose

Elena María “Mira” Álvarez

Eliza “Ash” Cohen

Jack “Pulse” Estrada

Tina Lin “Frost” Tsang

Maxim “Kapkan” Basuda

Timur “Glaz” Glazkov

  
  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Lunch involved spicy chicken legs, roasted potatoes, garlicky string beans, and avoiding questions. Anna and Mark ate quickly so that they could track down Sam to have Anna sit in but other operators kept stopping in to meet this civilian. Both Anna and Mark were getting tired of answering the same questions and not really having any peace to themselves. Anna because it makes her feel watched and vulnerable, and Mark because of his keen desire to keep information private.

Happy to get out of there, they headed outside to walk to the arena. It was the first time Anna actually got to see the grounds. It reminded her of a university campus. Pathways leading to different buildings with some low maintenance landscaping. Buildings were diverse and purposeful. Paths were marked clearly with a few common languages but Anna was sure they were hardly used. The stadium itself was imposing in stature. Tall curved outside walls towered inwards. The stadium was towards the back of the property but she was informed that it was actually the other way around.

There was a tournament held here that was open to spectators. They could enter from the far side which was nearer to town. The buildings she was in were behind the stadium and have a separate private road only accessible by Rainbow operators and facility staff.

She thought it was strange that there were no large fences or anything. Mark assured her that there were a lot of other types of security in place but she didn’t need to know the details. She nodded.

They reached the stadium and went inside. Harry was already there talking to Sam. He looked over and greeted them.

“Annaliese, Mark, good to see you again!” Harry removed his hands from his pockets. “Mark you already know Sam, but Annaliese, this is Sam Fisher. Our prestigious trainer.”

“Please just call me Zero,” Sam asked.

“I hoped that Anna could sit in the stadium seats while training goes on,” Mark faced Harry.

“I think that’s a good idea,” Harry smiled. “Annaliese could see what we do here from a safe distance. Perhaps you can see what training she has afterwards.”

“Is she a new recruit?” Sam asked.

“No, she’s a lot like Mark, though.” Harry responded. “Observant, creative, quick. She’s a special case that we are working on a plan for.”

Sam grunted in reply. He adjusted the rifle slung over his shoulder and waved vaguely.

“I’ll take that as a yes!” Harry smiled. “I shall join you in the stands. I believe there will be a few others watching today as well. Mark, why don’t you go get ready and I will explain to Annaliese how this works.”

Mark nodded to both of them and headed off to the right. Harry directed Anna to the stairs. “This section is the best view I think.”

——-

Harry was insightful. He described how everything was put together, who some of the operators were that were already on the field, and what Rainbow does on the whole. He also discussed how brutal it is, and short notice missions are. And the list of injuries operators come back with.

“I don’t know if you’re trying to convince me to stay or giving me reason to leave,” Anna looked over to him.

“I think you are someone that appreciates options,” Harry responded.

Voices started echoing from the concrete stairwell and were walking towards them. From the entrance emerged Kapkan, another Russian man, Pulse, Frost, and Ash.

“Who is dat?” The second Russian man asked.

  
“That is the civilian,” Eliza said to him. “We should sit on the other side then. Let her and Harry talk.”   
  
Harry eyed them, and gave a half smile. They went a few more rows up and sat on the opposite side of the stairwell.   
  
“They didn’t need to do that,” Harry said.   
  
“Eliza doesn’t like me.”   
“Eliza is a strong personality. It’s not that she doesn’t like you. She is skeptical of many people and it takes a long time and demonstration to change her opinion.”

_ I don’t think so. _

The rest of the trainees were approaching the field now and walked up to Sam for instruction on what today is focused on. Harry pointed down at the small group of people now armoured and armed.   
  
“Mark is the one in all black with the white taped X on his mask.”

“Why the tape?”   
“I’m not sure, but it sure suits his codename.” Harry grinned.   
“He’s never told me what that was.”   
“Mute.”

Anna didn’t reply. She tilted her head to the left, analyzing the field.  _ It’s weird seeing him like this. I never thought he would go military. He never seemed the type. _ You couldn’t hear anything that was going on from that far away but she was eagle eyed. Two of the people were having fun but she didn’t recognize either one, one was Elena, the other was the Mexican operator that she was talking to this morning.   
  
Harry explained that one was an American Navy SEAL named Valkyrie, the shorter man she was talking to was an Australian named Mozzie. Elena was talking to Mark and the Mexican man’s codename was Goyo. Sam called them all over. Lots of nodding going on. They started to make their way into the building while a timer sounded.

Anna lost track of what was going inside the building. Every so often someone would exit covered in what looked like talc powder. Mark eventually exited with some of the white powder on his rib cage. Sam exited untouched. _Talented, dangerous._ There was some talking going on and then a can of something was passed between the operators. They sprayed it on themselves to get rid of the powder. _Can of air?_ They talked a little more away from Sam and then entered again. It looked like Elena did most of the talking there. _She’s head of R &D, but it seems like she leads teams too._  
  
Once again, they exited one at a time with white powder on themselves. This time took longer. _Planning makes all the difference._ _And teamwork._ This went on for a total of an hour. Between the planning, discussions, lessons, directions, and talks, they had about five rounds.  
  
The operators looked exhausted by the end of it. Sam walked away with a little powder on one of his legs but unscathed otherwise. Mark looked like he was hit a few times. Mira too. Mozzie was the most covered. Valkyrie didn’t have a lot, but it was mostly focused around her face and feet. Goyo had a lot of the powder around his legs.

Mark took out a notebook and wrote some things down. Elena went over to him and mentioned a few things. Elena went over and talked to Mozzie and Valkyrie. They were nodding with some things she was saying. Valkyrie smacked Mozzie on the back and a cloud of powder poofed off of his uniform. She started laughing. Mozzie didn’t find it as funny and threw his hands up. Goyo was talking to Mark when Elena came back around. She mentioned something to the two of them and they both nodded. Valkyrie and Elena started to head back to the change rooms. Mozzie went up to the other male operators and took his helmet off to shake his hair. It turned from pink to red. Goyo covered his face to prevent the powder from getting into his eyes. They headed back to the changing rooms as well.   
  
The other operators in the stands were talking and discussing. Anna has no idea how they were aware of what was going on inside the building but it looked like they had some kind of computer tablet with them.  _ Maybe they had access to things. _   
  
“Let’s go down and meet them,” Harry suggested.   
  
Anna startled. She was so focused on the action around her that she forgot Harry was there the entire time. “Yeah, okay.”   
  
The two of them got up out of their seats and headed down to the entrance. Sam was there with a small horsehair brush cleaning out parts of his rifle.   
  
“Well, is the little bird going to join now or what?” Sam asked.   
  
“I don’t think my skill set is suitable for Rainbow,” Anna started. “And I’m okay at best with a pistol.”   
  
“Skill set?” Sam leaned back and looked up at them. “What do you do that we can’t find use for?”   
  
“She is a fraud specialist,” Harry clarified. Anna uncomfortably ran her fingers through her chin length dark hair.   
  
“Noted. I’ll come asking if I ever need something verified.”   
“Fraud specialist as in... producing.”   
“Oh really? So you could make me a contract to get out of debt?”   
“Yes, or to have you assassinated.”   
  
Sam’s smile disappeared. “Really now.” Anna nodded.   
  
“Don’t ever let me see your signature,” She said. “I could take over your identity within ten minutes.”

“Well shit,” Sam laughed. “I really need to keep on your good side.”   
  
Some of the operators started appearing after a shower and in more casual clothes. Sam acknowledged them by tilting his chin upwards. “Thank you again for your help, Zero.” Elena said. “Was there anything else that you needed from us today?”   
  
“Nah. Go get patched up if you need.” Sam shifted how he was sitting. It looked uncomfortable. “Get Finka out here if you come across her.”   
  
Elena nodded and headed back to the main building with César and Meghan. Max also headed out with a “g’day” and a spring in his step. Mark was the last to come out. He strolled up to the group of them while rubbing his wrist. He had some water dripping from his hair.   
  
“Mark, how do you feel training went?” Harry asked.   
  
“Informative, difficult. What I’ve come to expect.”   
“Excellent! I shall pass Anna back to you then. I think you two should do a little more gentle training later. I want you to be comfortable with her going back out into the world unguarded.”   
  
“Unguarded,” Sam chuckled. “Maybe I should have an hour with her to run through some things then. She should be her own damn guard.”   
  
“It’ll take more than an hour to get me to a point to take on a dozen trained personnel.”   
“You don’t know my training.”   
“You don’t know me. I’m pretty resistant to wanting to participate in violence.”   
“Sometimes you don’t have a choice, little bird. You can’t always fly away.”   
“I don’t intend to fly. I’m more the scurry through the grass type of flee.”   
“Blend into the crowd, huh? Could work.”   
“I’ve gotten pretty good with changing my look on the run. I even took a theatre class on quick change artistry. It helped a lot.”   
“Why did you lie to me, Harry? She definitely has a skill that we can find use for. Costumer!”

Mark wiped some of the water away from his face. “We should go.”   
  
“Sure,” Harry replied. “Please check in with Gustave about that wrist. It seems to be bothering you.”   
  
Mark rolled his wrist in a circle and shook his head. “It’ll be fine.”   
  
“Consider it,” Harry’s expression softened. “And do that training with Annaliese. It’ll do you both good.”   
  
Mark and Anna headed out. He massaged his wrist again.   
  
“You really should get that checked out.”   
“Nah.”   
“What happened?”   
“Landed wrong. I need tea.”   
  
\-----

Because it was a dead time for meals, Mark and Anna ended up sitting in the dining hall and talking, updating each other on life. He stopped back into the barracks and grabbed a deck of cards and they were playing GOPS. A simple bluffing game. Mark swept easily.  _ Figures, he’s good at remembering things. _ However, when Anna taught him how to play an Italian card game called Scopa, the roles were reversed. She could see his eyes planning, looking at the table, his hand, trying to recall and count the cards in his mind to figure out which cards she might have in her hand. He massaged his wrist again.    
  
“Are you sure you’re not going to get that checked out?” Anna asked.   
  
“It just needs rest,”

“I wouldn’t consider flipping cards to be restful for your wrist.”   
Silence.   
“I’m sure it’s better than what you would do in your bunk anyways.”   
Mark looked up at her.   
“It was a joke.”

“You would probably get beaten if one of the Italian operators were here.”

“It is in fact, quite likely. Don’t get sour.”   
Silence.

“You look like you’re about to pop a blood vessel with how hard you’re trying to strategize. It’s not that kind of game.”

Mark put his hand of cards face down and looked up at her. His cuppa was gone a long time ago and he was looking restless.   
  
Anna put her cards face up. “Surrender. Want to do anything else?”   
  
“I want to go for a run but your knee.”   
“If you get your wrist checked out, we can do some self defence stuff?”   
  
He sighed deeply. “Are you up for that?”   
  


“Yeah,” Anna smirked. “Let’s do it.”


	8. Test

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark does some basic self-defence training with Anna when he comes up with a brilliant idea.

**Chapter Eight - Test**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette   
Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Elena María “Mira” Álvarez   
  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Mark got the all-clear from Gustave and they headed back to the Stadium. Mark went back to their locker area and got into a clean SAS uniform. He had his mask in one of his hands, and yellow clothes in the other.   
  
“I ran into Elena back there and she had some spare clothes you could borrow,” Mark tossed them to Anna. “She’s loading out tomorrow so she won’t need them for another month or so.”

“Thanks,” Anna held up the shirt. It looks like it would be an okay fit. A high V neck. It looked like a soccer jersey…  _ Sorry, football. This is Europe. _ “Where can I change?”

He led her to a women’s changing room and waited outside. When Anna emerged in the t-shirt and shorts, Mark had already put on his mask and was adjusting straps on his vest.

“It’s weird seeing you like this,” Anna admitted. “You look… scary.”   
  


“Good,” Mark replied with a little distortion in his voice from the mask. He showed her to a small private training room with a sprung floor and padding on the lower half of the walls.

“We sometimes use this space for hand-to-hand combat,” Mark said. Anna took a moment to look around. It seemed to have a lot of resources to encourage that... plexi mirrors, first aid, common items that could be used in self-defense.

Mark noticed the scarring on her legs that he didn’t get to see prior.  _ Are those initials? _ He looked at the back of her left thigh just above the knee. There were more parallel scars on her right calf and what looked like a stab wound by her ankle. He shook his head and looked up. He took a deep breath. “Are you ready?”   
  
“I think so,” Anna replied absent-mindedly as she was putting down her water bottle. Mark came up behind her and put an arm around her neck. He grabbed the wrist of his choking arm with his opposite hand. He held the pose but didn’t actually apply any pressure to her neck. Anna grasped his forearms in her hands and stumbled to regain her balance.   
  
“What do you do?” Mark said quietly behind the mask. Anna got her footing, stepped forward with one leg, and swept under with the other twisting out of his hold. She was now arms length away from Mark and pushed herself further from him. She gasped, adrenaline pumping through her now.   
  
Mark stepped forward and pushed her against the wall, he put his hand around her neck and held firm without choking her. Anna quickly pivoted on her foot and struck the inside of his forearm with her palm leaving her an opening to wrap her arm around his neck from behind. She ended up hitting his mask canister which gave her a weak grip. He retaliated by grabbing her behind her knee and dropping her to the floor. She hit the floor with a grunt.   
  
Mark climbed on top of her and pinned her down. Anna struggled a little bit here. She reached to control his elbow and wrist but he had to adjust her grip. She moved her footing and was able to flip them both so that she was between his legs. He grabbed her arm to prevent escape, and she threw her body weight and struck him in the face with her opposite elbow. He was dazed and she managed to stand up and catch her breath. He sat up with his legs bent.   
  
“Good hit,” He complimented her. “It was a strong strike.”   
  
“I didn’t mean to hit you that hard… I was thinking about… a different situation I was in.”   
“No, I don’t want you to hold back. Channel that.”   
  
Mark clambered up and stepped forward to punch her. She easily dodged. He punched again and Anna parried it this time while stepping to the side. She pivoted and threw him into an arm lock by grabbing his tricep. Mark went down to one knee. He reached up and took something from his vest that she couldn’t see. He reached across to slice her leg with a knife and she slid her foot away.   
  
“Good, lifting your foot would’ve thrown you off balance too much.”   
“Were you actually going to cut me?”

  
“This is one of our practice knives. It’s made of a hard wax… similar to tailor’s chalk.” Anna let him go and he stood. He dragged the blade along his upper arm and it left a blue mark. “It might hurt but it shouldn’t leave more than a bruise and pain.”   
  
Mark took a step back and held the knife in front of him in an attack position. Anna got into a bracing position and put her hands up defensively. He lunged at Anna and she reached out to try and to pin the knife to his hip. He was stronger than her though and he broke through her grip. He turned the knife away at the last moment and ended up doing a medium punch to her stomach. Anna took a step back and coughed. Mark was back in an attack position.   
  
“You had the right idea but you started a little late,” He said. “Try again.”   
  
Anna lowered herself a little more and put her hands up. He ran at her, and this time she managed to redirect his attack better but he easily swung around and held it up to her neck.   
  
“Knives are quick and hard to block,” Mark stated. “Your best bet is to just run if you can. Do your ‘blending into the crowd techniques’ if possible. If you can’t, redirect like you did and then run.”   
  
“We’re a little enclosed here. It’s difficult to run.”   
“Pull down as much as you can to slow down your attacker. Tables, chairs, papers, anything. You won’t win against a knife. Even defending yourself perfectly will still result in you getting cut somewhere.”   
  
Mark put the wax blade back into its holster. He drew a red coloured pistol with no trigger or barrel. He showed her first this time before taking a step back and aiming it at her with his finger resting on the side. His outstretched arm was still fairly close to her face so she swiftly stepped out of line of the pistol, grabbed the barrel and his wrist and aimed it back at him.   
  
Anna took a number of steps back to increase the distance. She held the gun with two hands, a firm body, and with leaning in a little. Mark put his hands up.   
  
“Hold still,” He said. Anna dropped the aim a little as he approached her, confused. He lifted her hands back up. “Aim it like you’re about to shoot.”   
  
Anna got back into position while Mark circled her. He nudged one of her feet with his and tapped her shoulder. “Let these drop a little. Otherwise, a good stance. Give it back to me.”   
  
Anna passed it back and Mark backed up a little. He pointed the pistol at her with two hands this time. Once again, Anna stepped out of the line of the pistol and grabbed the barrel and the back end of the gun this time, she forced it down and flipped it back towards Mark. His wrists couldn’t keep up. Once again, she took control of the weapon, got into stance and backed up so that he couldn’t reach her. Mark walked over and forced her to drop her shoulders once again.   
  
He took a deep inhale and exhaled sharply. He took the pistol back and holstered it. These were all simple things to help her escape common attacks. She’s definitely done this before and he didn’t like that realization.   
  
“I want you to try and get past me now,” Mark got low and put his hands up defensively.   
  
Anna looked around the room but Mark only looked at Anna. She realized that she had a wooden post at her feet. She tucked her toes up under it and tossed it up to her hands. Mark nodded at her indicating that he liked the technique. Anna held it like a baseball bat before she kicked a foam block at Mark and ran at him. He slapped the foam away and disarmed her quickly. Or so he thought. Anna was pulled against him as he tripped her and took her to the ground. He climbed on top of her and went to choke her. She withdrew the wax practice knife from behind him and held it up to his neck.   
  
Mark leaned back and smiled though Anna couldn’t see it. “Smart. You were fast.”

He carefully stood up and helped her up. She handed the knife back to him and he quickly sheathed it again. Anna sighed and went over to the water bottles they brought. She cracked one open and took a swig. Mark took off his mask and pulled his snood down. He cracked his open as well. “This is the first time you drank something without seeing if it was poison first.”   
  
Anna shrugged and looked down. She closed the bottle and set it down. She leaned against the wall and looked at Mark again. “You still look… scary.”   
  
“They’re just clothes,” Mark shook his head and took another sip. “You should see some of the others. Cav wears face paint that looks like a skull.”   
  


“I don’t care about not fearing the others.”

“Do I actually scare you?”   
Anna nodded.   
“You know I wouldn’t hurt you.”   
“I know you could, though. That’s very apparent right now.”   
  


Mark put down the bottle and leaned against the wall beside her. He reached over and handed her his mask. She took it, looked at it straight on, and felt the material. Flipping it over, she peered inside. Literally just a mask.

“I wouldn’t hurt you,” Mark affirmed.

“I know,” Anna replied, passing the mask back. Mark looked up at the clock.   
  
“‘Ey. It’s time for dinner. Let’s eat, and I can take you to the armoury next.” Mark nudged her with his elbow. He’s not so good at handling these ‘emotion’ things. “I want to see you take some shots. C’mon.”

  
He stood up from the wall, grabbed his bottle, and went towards the door. Anna didn’t move.   
  
“What’s on your mind?” He asked her.   
  
“Nothing,” She said. “Just some mantras.”   
  
Mark looked at her sternly. “Y’know. I can tell when someone is lying real easy.”

“Probably,” Anna dismissed him. She bent and picked up her bottle and made her way to the door. Mark outstretched his arm and stopped her. She looked up to him and he just raised his eyebrows.   
  
“Listen, I went through a lot of things before I got any kind of training. That training was traumatizing, this... was traumatizing, and I don’t know if I will actually be able to eat anything. Or sleep at all tonight.” Anna sighed and took some calming breaths. Mark removed his hand from the wall and massaged the stubble on his face. He reached out and pulled her into a hug again. Anna hugged back. She started to shake and pulled away, wiping tears from her eye lashes. “We should go. I can’t let this stop me from moving forward. I have to keep going.”   
  
“We all need to take time, Anna.” Mark said softly. “None of this… none of this is  _ easy _ .” 

“You have a team to back you,” Anna muttered. “One of them can take your place if you need a day off. I don’t get days off. I don’t get breaks. No vacations, no social time, no time to cry. I have to be always vigilant, always scared because being scared keeps me alive.”

“If you ever need time to take a breath, I have a flat in England. You can pop in uninvited, and let me tell you, no one gets that offer.” Mark pointed at her. “I will do anything in my power to make sure you feel safe there.”   
  
“I don’t like repeating patterns,” Anna looked at him. “They’ll catch on that I keep going to you and then they will go after you to get to me. Or they’ll figure out how I’m getting to England and intercept me.”   
  
“Anna, you said it yourself. I have a team behind me, several actually.” Mark raised his arms and let them fall to his sides. “Nothing will scare me more than not having you check in. As for the interception, I can meet you at airports or docks or anywhere.”   
  
“Except for when you’re in Greece,” Anna shook her head. “Or any other country for that matter. You work globally. This isn’t a simple thing, Mark.”   
  
Mark paused. “Let’s go eat and I will talk to Grace, and Elena if she’s still here.”   
“Who’s Grace?”   
“Dokkaebi. She was on the team that went to the caves.”   
“Ah.”

\-----

  
Anna had a shower after the training and Mark went to change back at his locker. He looked more normal now except Anna noticed his muscle tone. She was so preoccupied that she never actually noticed it.  _ Of course he’s jacked. Military. _ They went off to the dining hall and as predicted, Anna couldn’t stomach much. She had some toast with jam. Her stomach growled but Mark pretended not to notice. The dining hall was 24h so she was free to come get food anytime.   
  
Elena came in and dropped a pair of duffel bags on the ground by the door before heading over to the buffet.   
  
“Wait here,” Mark said to Anna. He approached Elena and was talking to her as she was loading up her plate. Elena nodded back to him. Mark rejoined Anna at the table. “I needed to see if the lab was being used this evening.”   
  
“Lab?”   
“R&D. I have an idea if you are up for it. It’s a little strange but it might work.”


	9. RFID

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Communication lines open and start to ease anxieties.

**Chapter Nine - RFID**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette   
Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Grace “Dokkaebi” Nam   
  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

It took hours for Mark to convince Anna of his plan. They went in circles, there were diagrams, so many questions. They were both exhausted by the end of it. Anna sighed and gave in, still weary. Mark led her to the R&D Lab and called for Grace who rushed over enticed by a project.

Mark and Grace were babbling about things that made no sense to Anna.  _ Gadget this, sensor that, shaker, signal, connection, migration _ . She made her way around the lab and looked at some of the machines on the counters. A bang sounded from behind her and Anna jumped.

“Here they are,” Grace said. She flipped open the metal tray she roughly set down. “I think the connection abilities will do with this model.”

Mark pulled out his cellphone and scanned it over the tray. Anna approached the bench to see what was inside. It looked like black grains of rice. His phone beeped. “They’re active.”

“You will need to talk to Lena about any mechanical changes such as the alert options,” Grace smiled. “I will handle the software.”

“Are these the little... chip things?” Anna asked.

“Yes! Little RFID chips! Kind of like you get for your dog.” Grace seemed excited about this project. “We want to change them so that when you press it, the other one will vibrate and you can communicate that way.”

“But how will they only communicate with each other and no one else in the outside world?” Anna probed, leaning on the edge of the table to get a better look.

“I can make a program where the unique RFID code changes every minute. Both chips will have the same program inside and will generate the codes the same way so they will know what the other’s code is all the time! Isn’t it exciting?” Grace bounced and clasped her hands together. Anna was skeptical.

“I will talk to Lena tonight. She’s always up late.” Mark closed the tray again. “Thanks.”

“You know it!” Grace gave a peace sign sideways over her left eye. “Any closer to stopping my Logic Bomb?”

“Loads,” Mark said flatly.

“Really?”

“Yeh.”

“Not for long.”

Grace narrowed her eyes and left. 

“What was that about?”

“One of her ‘things’ is where she hacks our phones. She calls it her Logic Bomb. I’ve been working for a long time now on how to prevent that.”

“So you figured it out?”

“No, I wanted to tease her.”

“You’re so mean.”

“There’s no harm in challenging another operator. I need to find Lena.”

It was getting late now. Dinner was four hours ago. Training was the only thing between lunch and dinner. And breakfast seemed so far away even though it was only this morning. Anna couldn’t help but yawn.

“Ah, and we need to figure out where you are sleeping tonight.”

——-

Mark unlocked the door to the room. Inside was a bed with packaged bedding to keep it clean. There was a small but functional desk, a comfortable chair, and a small closet. It was simple all around. Staff quarters. Harry said this would be a suitable place for her in order to keep the medical bay clear. Anna hugged herself. The room was cold. Not just temperature wise but also visually. Everything was a medium grey or black including the paint. No bedding just made things seem bleaker.

“Normally staff can bring in some individual decorative things to make their rooms homier,” Mark mentioned. “I heard the beds are comfortable. And being in this wing means you’re a lot safer. It’s underground, concrete, locked doors.”

Anna tore open the bag of bedding. Sheets, a comforter, pillows and pillow cases. They both quickly made the bed and Anna sat down. She patted the mattress beside her asking Mark to sit as well. He hesitated but joined her.

“I’ve heard that these chips can be programmed with other things as well,” Anna said curiously. “Can I program it with credit card information?”

“I can ask Grace,” Mark replied. Anna fell back on the bed. She tugged on the back of Mark’s shirt and he laid back. Anna rolled to face him and put her head on his chest. He raised his head to look at her and rested it back down. He moved his arm around her shoulders.

“It would be easier to keep access to money with me,” Anna said as she buried her face deeper into his ribs. “I wouldn’t be as resourceless in times like these.”

Mark didn’t respond, but they ended up laying there for quite some time. Anna had a fistful of his shirt in her hands and her grip loosened. Mark looked down and she appeared to be asleep. “Anna?” She stirred.

“Sorry.” Anna sat up and rubbed her face. Mark sat up as well and then stood. He pulled the keycard out from his pocket and tossed it to the desk.

“Let’s get you settled in,” Mark said softly. Anna took off her shoes and socks and tossed them to the closet. Mark noticed that she was missing her smallest toe on her right foot. There was some scarring on her foot as well. She took off her sweater and was just in her tank top now. She reached up underneath her shirt to unhook her bra and slid the straps down over her shoulders. She pulled it out of her arm hole with one swift movement and draped it over the back of the desk chair.

“I…” She turned to face Mark and realized that he was facing away from her to give her some privacy. She sighed and decided to take her pants off after all. She’s fine to sleep in a tank top and underwear. The pants joined the bra, concealing it. She slid under the covers.

“You can turn around now.”

Mark peeked over his shoulder before turning fully. He went to the desk and turned the lamp on before switching off the overhead light. He sat on the edge of the bed.

“Are you going to sleep at all?”

“Probably not. But rest is better than nothing.”

“...What if I lay with you? Just for a little while?”

“I would like that.”

Mark climbed into the bed on top of the covers and offered his chest again. Anna scooted over and laid against him. His arm returned to her shoulder. It felt closer this time since she wasn’t wearing her scruffy sweater. He laid in the dim lighting for a short while until Anna twitched.  _ She’s falling asleep now. Good girl.  _ Mark repositioned his arm and started to stroke her hair. Her shoulders sagged and her whole body relaxed. He turned and rested his head on hers.

_ You mean a lot to me. You were one of the few people I called a friend. It bloody hurt reading your obit. _

Anna was now fully a puddle under the sheets. He gently lifted her head and slid his arm out. She stirred but didn’t wake and he let out a sigh of relief. He pulled the sheets up a little more and quietly exited the room.  _ I hope she sleeps through the night. But now I have to find Finka. _

——-

Anna woke the following morning mostly rested. She didn’t know how many hours of sleep she actually got but she woke up around two in the morning to Mark gone. She rolled around and tried to rest again but it didn’t work. She didn’t end up falling asleep again until about 5:30. A knock at her door sounded at a little before eight.

Anna was reluctant to get out of the bed but got up. She looked through the peephole and saw that it was Mark.  _ Who else would it be? _ She cracked open the door.

“I need to dress, one moment.”

Anna quickly slid into her pants, and threaded her bra back on without having to take her shirt off. She threw her cardigan around her shoulders. She opened the door for Mark and grabbed her socks and shoes on her way back to the bed to sit.

“You look like you slept better,” He said, entering.

“Yes, I did.” Anna tied her shoe. “Thank you.”

Mark smirked and then yawned. “Bloody hell, I’ve been up all night now.”

“Doing what?”

“Working with Finka on the RFID chips. She builds nanobots so she’s the best one to customize something so small. I think we got a working version. Grace has it now to focus on the code.”

“That was fast.”

“We needed to be fast. You hungry?”

“Very.”

——-

Anna had a larger breakfast today. Rice with lots of vegetables and scrambled egg. She also had two naans to eat with. Mark had most of a classic English breakfast. He steeped his tea for a little longer than normal.  _ He’s definitely tired. _

“When do you think the chips will be ready to be implanted?” Anna asked between mouthfuls.

“Should be later today knowing Grace.”

“Do you guys ever take breaks?”

“All the time. Just short ones.”

Mark yawned again.

“You should get some sleep.”

“I can't leave you unsupervised.”

“I’m flattered that you all think I’m a troublemaker.”

“Not that, there’s a lot of classified information here and you’re good at replication.”

“I figured.”

Silence.

“Let’s go back to my room then,” Anna suggested. “I could also use a little more sleep.”

“Wouldn’t be appropriate.”

“I would still be ‘supervised’ and you would be a little more prepared for the day.”

Mark sighed.

“I’ll have to grab my radio in case Grace calls for us.”

“Works for me.”

——-

Mark was asleep as soon as he hit the mattress.  _ Military life. _ Anna stretched out beside him and snuggled into his chest. He unconsciously draped his arm over her and pulled her in. She wondered if he'd done this before. She wondered if he had a girlfriend... or wife.  _ Or husband.  _ Anna scrunched up her face. He didn’t strike her as gay but she’s been surprised before. For now, she’ll rest. And he will too.

Anna closed her eyes and felt safe for the first time in a while.


	10. Connection

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark and Anna test the chips!

**Chapter Ten - Connection**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette   
Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Grace “Dokkaebi” Nam

Timur “Glaz” Glazkov

Gustave “Doc” Kateb   
  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

_ Bzzt. Earth to Mark. Where are you? _

His eyes fluttered open. Anna was curled up beside him and his arm was draped over her waist. Quickly jumping up, he dove for the radio and called back.

“Did you get the program finished?”

_ Yeah, I think so. Come take a look at it and I’ll show you what I put together. _

“We’ll be there soon.”

_ Where are you by the way? I checked everywhere. _

“We were outside exploring the grounds. Just got back in.”

_ Out smelling the flowers, huh? _

_ “ _ Something like that.”

Mark leaned forward against the desk where the radio sat. He set it back down and turned to face the bed. Anna was sitting upright and was rubbing her eyes.

“Well that’s good news,” She said, yawning. “Shall we go?”

Mark looked at her sternly. “We can’t let anyone know that we slept.”

“Why? Because people might think you’re human?”

“Because of professional boundaries. It’s not important information.”

“Professional? Oh, c’mon…”

“I mean it.”

Mark ran his fingers through his hair and grabbed the radio. He was clearly flustered. “Let’s go.”

_ Something is definitely bothering him, _ Anna thought.  _ I wonder if he is in a committed relationship. Cheating is heavily looked down upon in the military and can end up in discharge under certain circumstances… _

They walked up the stairs to the main lobby area. Grace was turning the corner heading to the lab. “There you are!”

Mark fluffed his hair again. Anna felt better after the extra hour or so of sleep. They entered the lab and Mark and Grace were babbling in tech words trying to one up each other slightly. Anna rolled her eyes and smirked.

There was the younger Russian man in there adjusting something small and dark. He looked up at them but they paid him no mind. Except Anna, she smiled and gave a small wave. The man stood and walked over.

“Eliza didn’t tell me your name,” He said plainly. He had a small scar on his eye, some facial hair, and was generally a handsome guy.

“I am Anna,” She replied. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Timur,” He offered his hand and Anna shook it. “I’m glad you are both here. Grace was talking to me too much.” He gave a hearty laugh.

“I just started to ignore them, really. I’m not a tech person.”

“I am not either. I like detail but not little systems like such.”

“Timur is a sniper,” Mark said, listening in on them. “And an artist. Painter.”

“Oh, you paint? That’s amazing. I imagine the steady hands help.”

“Painting is my passion. Shooting… well… is a skill.”

“From your accent… are you Russian? I don’t want to assume.”

“Russia, yes.”

“When I think of Russian art, I think of the ballet, of course. But also the Hermitage in St. Petersburg. Ooh, that was breathtaking. One of my absolute favourite places in the world.”

“You’ve been to St. Petersburg?”

“I’ve been all over. Russia gets a bad image. It’s actually lovely.”

Timur crossed his arms and smiled.  _ He probably doesn’t hear that a lot. _

Two in depth conversations were going on. One with Mark and Grace about technology, and one with Timur and Anna about art. It went on like this for some time until Gustave walked in. Grace called Anna over.

“Timur, I believe you left your scope on the bench.” Grace pointed. Timur was too busy examining Anna but looked up when Grace spoke. Mark took notice but Anna was oblivious. Timur grabbed it and left.

“Is it time?” Anna asked.

“Yes,” Grace said. There was what looked like medium sized syringes sealed in sterile packages on the table. Gustave sighed and slipped on some clean gloves.

“Where are we doing the injection?” Gustave asked.

“Hands are most convenient I think,” Mark suggested. Anna shrugged.

“I would strongly suggest your non-dominant hand,” Gustave mentioned. He didn’t sound convinced about this whole thing but wanted to be the one to do the procedure. “Are you sure we don’t want this done in the medical bay?”

“It should be fine,” Mark dismissed Gustave’s concerns.

“I’m good with it here or in the medical bay,” Anna shrugged. “It seems like here is well kept and cleaned regularly.”

“Elena makes sure of that,” Grace rolled her eyes. Gustave looked at each of them and sighed.

Mark put his hand out. Gustave sanitized one of the chips, opened one of the syringes, and put the chip in. He quickly sanitized between the forefinger and thumb on Mark’s hand and pinched the skin upwards. He injected the chip deep below the skin and removed the needle. Mark scrunched up his face but didn’t make a sound. Gustave disposed of the needle into a small biohazard sharps container that he brought.

Anna’s turn. She held out her left hand. Gustave repeated the sanitization process and pinched her skin up. Anna sucked her teeth when he inserted the chip deep into her hand. He removed the needle and let go. Anna gripped her left hand in her right and then gave it a little shake. 

“Not what I was expecting… ugh.”

“You did well, though.”

Anna felt her hand. There was a tiny sore bump there now but it didn’t hurt.  _ Just something to get used to. _ Suddenly a sharp pain shot through her hand and she yelped. It caught Mark off guard too and he made a fist. Gustave looked worried.

“Alllll right,” Grace clasped her hands together. “Let’s get to testing!”

“What was that pain?”

“You didn’t test these?”

“Of course I tested them… just not  _ in _ humans. The pain was the chip latching onto your bone!”

“That’s not at all reassuring.”

“Trust me,” Grace flapped her hand. “I did all kinds of testing and I am confident that it will work! It is now sitting tightly against your finger bone. You can use it like a button!

“So you will both need to press and hold it for three seconds to activate the signal. Then you can click it for communication. Morse code or whatever. The other chip will vibrate to let them know there is an incoming message. It will tickle the nerve that runs along your finger so this is where the testing comes in. We want it to be gentle enough that it won’t cause pain but strong enough to detect…

“You can also hold it for five seconds near a Bluetooth device and it will connect you both so that you can talk vocally. Any Bluetooth device as long as it has a microphone and a speaker and a way to connect to the network. The signal between the chips travels along telecommunication lines and towers. A genius hack of mine. Oh! And it can automatically transfer a GPS coordinate if you hold for five seconds away from a Bluetooth device!”

“Welcome to the future,” Anna muttered. “And you’re sure,  _ absolutely sure _ , that no one else will be able to find me through this chip?”

“If they think they can hack a new code every fifteen seconds, I’d like to see them try!” Grace flashed a dangerous look.

Anna’s hand twitched. She held it up and looked over to Mark. He was gripping his hand. “Well, it works.”

Anna clicked her chip back in three different clicks. Mark wiggled his fingers.  _ This is so weird. I don’t know how I feel being connected to someone like this. _

“I will head back,” Gustave collected the third unused syringe, the sharps bin, and headed towards the door. “Good luck with all of this.”

Anna sighed. “I guess we need to figure this code thing out.”

——-

Anna looked down at the paper. She seemed hesitant.

“You don’t regret this, do you?” Mark asked her.

“Short answer, no. Long answer, I’m conflicted.”

“How?”

“This blows the whole… secrecy thing I’ve been doing for that last eight years. I’m still worried that this could be used against you. I still worry that this could be used against me. I’m worried that I’ll forget all of this when I panic next. All kinds of things…”

Silence.

“But I like knowing that I have resources right inside of my hand. Human and monetary.”

Anna reread the list:

  1. Hold steady/Wait/Repeat
  2. All clear/Affirmative
  3. Need help/In danger (Follow with coords)
  4. Are you available? (1 No, 2 Yes)
  5. Just checking in.



There was also a chart of Morse code, specific country codes, and tips to shorten messages. Mark has been getting her to practice. She’s mostly gotten the hang of it but more review will be necessary. Her stomach growled. It’s already early afternoon and she hasn’t eaten since breakfast.

She folded the paper up and tucked it in her pocket. “Can we grab food please?”

Mark stared at her. He’s already told her that he wants her to have the chart as short as possible but she just doesn’t learn like that.  _ I’m not smart like you… _ Mark gave in and nodded.  _ I probably look pathetic enough. _

“Thank you,” Anna acknowledged his softened resolve. “I will try more after we eat.”

\-----

Anna had a wrap and fries for lunch. Well, she called them fries. Mark disagreed. It was a long conversation about differences between North American English and British English that took them to the end of the meal.

“You know, you never did take me to the range.” Anna said nibbling on the last fried potato stick. “It might be a good test for these RFID chips… to see if they are affected by recoil or the grips or something?”   
  
“They probably won’t be,” Mark said offhandedly. “You have to hold them for a while before they communicate.”   
  
“Worth testing.”   
“Sure.”

Silence.   
“You said you were okay with a pistol? Any experience with rifles?”   
“I tried twice. The first time, they were out of ammo. The second time, it was just too much for me and I retrieved a pistol instead.”   
“Mmm.”   
“I’m not against it, just more comfortable with a handgun.”   
“It’s best to have knowledge of a variety of firearms if you get into a tight spot.”

“This is true. So maybe you can show me some common ones?”   
“Sure.”   
  
They returned their plates to the wash bin and headed off to the gun range.

\-----

The armoury was in a building right next to the range to securely house a selection of firearms. Operators also had their own personal firearms at the arena in their lockers but these ones were general use and for training.

Mark went through and signed out five different weapons and took a few boxes of ammunition. They both put on eye and hearing protection. Mark also insisted she have a holster but Anna wasn’t sure why. They split the cases between the two of them and went into the range building. There were a few others inside, including Timur from before. Mark and Anna took a lane a few down from the others and laid out the cases on the table behind them. Mark reviewed some safety information before they touched anything.

  
Anna nodded along and agreed. Mark turned to the table and pulled one of the smaller cases towards himself and opened it to reveal a pistol.   
  
“The two pistols are relatively similar. Slight differences in capacity, but ours is a little more powerful,” Mark smirked and pulled out the body of the gun and started to assemble it. He looked over to one of the cases Anna carried in. “The one you have over there is the one the Canadians use. The Mk1. I have the P226 here and anyone here from the SAS will use it. Both are good.”   
  
Mark held it down at his side and grabbed a box of ammunition. He approached the counter at the lane and started to load the magazine. Anna joined him and observed.   
  
“Are you ready?” Mark asked. Anna replied and took a half step back. He held the gun up and aimed down the range and fired three shots. He lowered the gun, removed his finger from the trigger and turned to her. “Did you want to take some shots?”   
  
“That’s why we’re here, aren’t we?” Anna had a furrowed brow but stepped forward. Mark turned on the safety, handed her the gun tenderly, and she took his spot. Her finger was securely off the trigger and she braced. Mark reached out and reminded her to drop her shoulders. He corrected her foot position again as well.   
  
“When you’re ready, take the safety off, and fire,” Mark said. Anna moved the safety lever, moved her finger to the trigger while aiming. She also fired three shots, confident but slow. Her shoulders moved with the recoil, but was overall controlled. She moved her finger back to the side and loosened her stance, re-engaging the safety. Mark nodded. “Good.”   
  
Anna went to hand him the pistol back but Mark refused. “Holster it for now. I’ll get the Mk1 ready.”   
  
It was just them and Timur in the range now but it was silent.  _ No shots? _ She looked over and he was sitting towards the table at the back and had a notepad out, staring at her.


	11. Rounds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna shoots Mark.

**Chapter Eleven - Rounds**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette   
Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Timur “Glaz” Glazkov

Sam “Zero” Fisher   
  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Anna narrowed her eyes at the Russian man. He smiled and closed his book. Timur grabbed his long rifle and walked towards the both of them.   
  
“I didn’t know you shoot,” He said to Anna. Mark looked up, just finishing the assembly of the second pistol.   
  
“It’s good to know,” Anna said smoothly. “Trying out a few different guns for the experience.”   
  
Timur walked up to the table and leaned his rifle up against the wall. He slid some of the cases around and nodded. “Modest selection. I could show you one that will knock you on your backside?”

“I’m not here to be a marksman,” Anna shook her head. “Just to know how to use them on the small chance that I would need to.”   
  
“Not many people ‘need’ to use a submachine gun…” Timur tapped one of the cases.

  
“Not many, no.”   
“So why you?”

“I get mixed in with the wrong people sometimes.”   
“You should try not to.”   
“Good idea, wish I had thought of that.”   
  
Timur was quick to detect her tone and stared at her intently. “I get enough of that sar-cism from Zero.”

“These encounters are not by choice,” Anna crossed her arms and sighed. “I would rather them not happen at all. But they do, and I need to at least recognize some different types of guns and know how to… vaguely use them. Enough to give myself cover or something.”   
  
Timur looked concerned and shifted his gaze to Mark and then back to Anna. “Well, you have two trainers then. Mark is good with defending. That’s what he do. I am attacker. I can show how to be more aggressive and how to spot things from far away.”   
  
Anna looked to Mark for his opinion. Mark shrugged. “It’s up to you. He’s good at what he does. Rainbow wouldn’t have him otherwise.”

Anna looked down thoughtfully. Timur shrugged. “My training would be better in the arena. Longer distance. Work with Mark here for short range and then you work with me there for sniping. Maybe after food… training in the dark can be helpful. Not all situations have good lighting.” 

“Thanks,” Mark acknowledged the offer.   
  
“For now, I would like to see you fire the pistol. Small guns are good to conceal and better in tight quarters.” Timur leaned up against the table with the cases. Mark handed the unloaded pistol to Anna. She sighed and took it to the counter and started to load it. Mark looked over to Timur and noticed him looking at her up and down with a small smile. Mark narrowed his eyes and smacked Timur on the shoulder.   
  
“Что! You cannot tell me you haven’t…”   
“Don’t.”   
  
The men couldn’t see it but Anna was rolling her eyes. She slid the magazine in and clicked it in place. “You two ready?” She called out vaguely behind her.   
  
“Да.”   
“Yes. Empty it this time.”   
  
Anna turned off the safety and started firing. From the 13 rounds, five would have been potentially fatal, another four would have been debilitating, and the rest hit outside the figure on the paper target.   
  
“Quick draw the other and keep going,” Mark challenged her.   
  
Anna placed the Mk1 on the counter and drew the P226 out of her holster. She quickly turned the safety off and continued to fire until it was dry. She placed it beside the other on the counter and clasped her hands together.   
  
“Well, he’s dead,” Timur said.   
  
“How was it going from one to the other?” Mark asked.   
  
“Fine, a little weird but it was a quick change.” Anna grabbed both pistols and turned to face the two men. She handed the Mk1 to Mark grip first and swapped the P226 into her right hand. Timur held his hand out to take it. She went to touch the barrel but it was still warm. She moved her hand towards the grip a little more and passed it over safely. They both started to disassemble the guns.   
  
“What do we want to try next?” Timur asked.   
  
“I’m most familiar with the M590A1, so probably that.” Mark put the Mk1 back into the case and marked it as ‘needing cleaning’. Timur did the same for the P226.

“Do you not clean them yourselves?”   
“We try to, but when we use this many guns, it takes too long. We have a few local officers that come in and volunteer to make sure our weapons are in good working order. We also allow them to use our range and weapons when they volunteer. They have access to different guns that way. Better training.”

“Ah.”   
  
Mark was now holding the M590 rifle. “You said you don't have a lot of experience, right? Let me show you then.”   
  
Anna leaned against the table beside Timur and Mark stepped forward with the rifle. Timur leaned into her and started explaining.   
  
“His pose will be a little wider when standing still. Not much. Bigger gun, bigger recoil, bigger stance for balance. Brace. Keep it right in the hollow of your shoulder.” Timur reached over and touched the inside of her shoulder by her collarbone. “Right here on the muscle. Right hand to grip, left hand to barrel where it is comfortable, lean in more than with a pistol, bend knees, cheek to stock, good to shoot.”

Mark shot three rounds when Timur said the last word. His upper body jolted but he leaned into it. Anna tensed. Timur saw her flinch. “You can do this,” He assured her.   
  
“I chose this one not because I use it,” Mark threw the safety on and turned around. “It’s a pump action rifle. You have to take it one shot at a time.”

Anna hesitantly stood up from the table and joined Mark at the counter. She fumbled with holding it up but Mark helped her adjust the stance and hand placements. He showed her the safety by the trigger and took a step back. She exhaled and took a shot. She loaded another buckshot into the barrel and took another shot. She completed her third shot and brought the barrel up. Very quickly, she handed it to Mark and sighed, flapping her hands in the air.   
  
“Didn’t like it?” Mark ensured the magazine was empty and set it back at the table.   
  
“Wasn’t really ready, but you can’t be with these things.” Anna replied. “Let’s keep going.”   
  
Mark looked to Timur who nodded.   
  
\-----   
  
Anna and Timur talked more about art and the concept of ‘beauty’ over food. Mark merely listened. The three of them walked off to the arena after eating a meal.   
  
Mark and Timur went off to the lockers to get some gear and Anna waited at the bottom of the stairs where she and Harry walked up before. The sun was setting and a little bit of a chill started to creep into the air. Timur returned alone with a different rifle, a bigger scope attachment, and a spotter scope.   
  
“Let’s go hunt us a British man,” He smiled at Anna and handed her the rifle. He pulled his mask up over his nose so that only his piercing blue eyes were exposed.   
  
“I’m not going to aim this at him, am I?”   
“Of course you are!”   
“I’m not comfortable with that…”   
“It does not fire real bullets. Just the powder ones. It might hurt, but he will not die from it… He will also be wearing his mask and vest so he will have protection. Do not worry.”   
  


Anna shifted the rifle in her hands. It’s much longer than the ones she used in the range.  _ It feels like I’m going to knock everything over with this. _ She kept it more upright and followed Timur up the stairs. He led her to a section of chairs and sat down. She sat beside him, and he helped her manage the rifle. He got her to plant her feet securely, rest the rifle on the back of the chair in front of her, and lean into it. He helped her adjust the scope to be more comfortable. Anna wasn’t liking this position and ended up kneeling between the seats instead to get a better angle.   
  
Timur’s radio beeped. “Ah, he is ready. Try to find him.”   
  


Anna peered through the scope and scanned the arena seats.   
  
“I already see him.”   
  
“What?” Anna looked up at Timur who was lowering the spotter scope. “How?”   
  
“Details. Keep looking.”   
  
Anna peered through the scope again but found that the field of view was too small. Without moving much, she looked up past the scope and found a few areas she wanted to inspect closer.  _ White X. Glare off the goggles. Anything.  _ A flicker caught her attention and she looked to a seat at 2 o’clock. There was Mark in the stairs, sitting in his dark coloured SAS uniform against the grey paint.   
  
“Found him.”   
“Shoot him.”   
Silence.  _ Hesitation _ .   
“If he knows where you are, he would have taken the shot. You must shoot first.”   
Silence.   
Bang.   
  
Mark flinched when the white powder pellet burst on the step beside him.   
  
“This rifle is good. Accurate. I make sure of that. Why did you miss?”   
“I’m cold.”   
“If I give you my jacket, will you hit him next time?”   
  
Anna saw Mark get up and exit the seating area. She lifted the rifle and leaned it up against the seats before sitting in silence. Timur took his fur trimmed jacket off and offered it to her. She didn’t take it right away. He shook it in front of her.   
  
“Take it. This is important. You need a good foundation before you can snipe in all weather.”   
“How did you learn to control your shivering?”

Timur stared at her. “I’m… from Russia. I had a lot of opportunity to shoot in the cold. In winter.”

Beep.   
  
“Let’s try and find him again,” Timur grabbed his spotter scope. “And we won’t miss this time, да?”

Anna pulled the jacket on and set up the rifle on the seat again. She did a quick scan before peering through the scope itself.   
  
“I see him.”   
  
Anna dropped her shoulders and looked up, stunned. Timur’s blue eyes crinkled jovially. She shook her head and looked back through the scope, slightly frustrated. She fanned out from where Mark was sitting before. It wasn’t all that long between him leaving and the second beep so he only would have been able to go far if he sprinted. Several rows up and a section over was Mark. He was in the seats this time.   
  


“I found him.”   
  


She aimed at his chest and hesitated only a moment before pulling the trigger. It hit his ribs.  _ A little right. _   
  
“Very good.” Timur praised her. “Wouldn’t kill him right away but he would not be happy with that. Might have hit the liver. He would bleed out eventually from that.”   
  
Anna nodded. Once again Mark disappeared into the exits. Without removing the rifle from the seat in front of her this time, Anna leaned back and pulled the hood up. She wrapped her arms around herself and waited.   
  
“You are really cold?”   
“Not cold, but I have a chill.”   
“Sounds like being cold to me.”   
Silence.   
“Can I ask?”   
Anna looked over to Timur.   
“What is your relationship to Mark?”   
“We’re friends.”   
“You seem closer than that.”   
“In our lines of work, you hold onto what friends you have with dear life.”   
Silence between both of them. Mark was taking longer than that.   
“Do you have someone special, Anna?”   
“No. I intend on keeping it that way.”   
Timur nodded understanding but disappointed.   
“Why?”   
“You have good brain, smart. Also love art. Which is fitting because you look like a masterpiece. I think it was a Canadian that said ‘you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take’?”   
Anna smiled and exhaled, blushing from the compliment and from the chilly air.   
  
Beep.   
  
_ Definitely further this time, or maybe he did that intentionally to make me think that _ . Anna did a quick scan of the seats with her eagle eyed vision. Nothing out of place.   
  
Silence from Timur. Anna glanced over to him out of the corner of her eye and noticed him still looking. She looked back out and caught a glint coming from one of the windows of the building structure in the centre. This time, she took the shot without announcing it. It struck Mark in the shoulder.   
  
“Хорошей целью,” Timur smiled. “Ahh... ‘good aim’. I saw him just before the bullet struck. You are getting better. That is good.”

_ Bzzt. Good shot! Are we going once more or…? _ _   
_   
Timur looked over at Anna. “What do you want to do?”   
  
“Maybe one more?”   
“The pretty lady says she wants to shoot you again. I don’t know what you did to her. You should apologize.”   
_ More it is. I’ll make this one harder. _   
  


Timur looked over to her. “He didn’t apologize. I can hurt him for you if you want?”   
  
Anna laughed at that. “No, I... I think I got it. But thank you.”   
  
Timur adjusted his mask to go up over his ears. It really was getting colder now. Anna felt bad about taking his jacket but she hasn’t seen him shiver at all.  _ Russian genes, maybe. Or maybe training. Or maybe he doesn’t want me to feel bad. _   
  
Beep.   
  
Both jumped to their scopes to race to see who could find Mark first.  _ It was short again this time. _ Timur was quiet, as was Anna. They were both focused intently and it kept like this for a while. Even Timur was taking a moment to look up from the scope and scan with his bare eyes. After a few minutes, he laughed. Anna looked over to him.   
  
“I found him... But it’s a very tricky spot. Very small amount of him showing. Section B.” Timur shook his head. Anna was looking in Section C at that moment but adjusted to B on Timur’s advice. “You can see just his head.”   
  
Row by row, she moved scanning, analyzing, looking for any movement, glare, tape, and oval shapes. She was seeing nothing. Timur gave her a hint. “Towards the bottom.”   
  
Anna kept the muzzle aimed low. Finally, a foot. Mark was crouched behind a low wall and was barely poking out.   
  
“I see him. Would I be able to shoot through the wall?”   
“No, it’s too thick. Watch him and see where his head will peek out, aim there and then wait for him to peek out again. The bullet will take time to get there so try to predict his movement.”   
  
Anna held still, patient. But she is not a patient person. Mark moved and looked up at them. He tucked back quickly. Anna wanted to take the shot but crinkled her nose in frustration instead.   
  
“Keep calm, and blink less.”   
“Easier said than done.”   
“Being a sniper is not easy. You just have to do it.”   
  
It was several more minutes before Mark peeked out again. Anna took the shot and clipped his head.   
  
“There you go! He would be dead from that.”   
Anna exhaled and relaxed her shoulders.   
  
“Are you sure you’re not joining, little bird?”   
  
Timur and Anna looked up and saw Zero standing there.   
  
“I’m sure. It took some hints from Timur to find him in the first place.”   
“Still an okay shot. I heard sounds so I came to investigate. Just the three of you here?”   
“As far as we know.”   
“Keep it that way. And don’t stay out too late tonight. We really should ship you out soon... There is a pilot on the team that can fly you to anywhere in Europe... you just name a place.”   
  
Zero gave a stern look at Timur and turned to leave.   
  
_ Bzzt. Who was that? _ _   
_ “Zero. We should head back now.”

_ I’ll meet you at the lockers. _

“Anna, have you seen our... offices?”   
“I have not.”   
“You’re about to. Up you go.”


	12. Tour

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group goes their separate ways.

**Chapter Twelve - Tour**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette   
Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Timur “Glaz” Glazkov

Elias “Blitz” Kötz

Marius “Jäger” Streicher

  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Bonn, Germany

Bergen, Norway   
  
Timur led her down a locked hallway. He was carrying both the spotter scope and the sniper rifle now. She was still bundled up in his too-big jacket. She heard metal grate sounds from further down the hall but Timur stopped beside one of the many jail cell looking lockers. He punched in his lock code and opened the door. Inside, he quickly stashed the rifle and scope in a gun safe in the corner.   
  
He exited the locker and shut the door behind him. They walked down the hall together until they came across Mark’s locker. He was shirtless with just his jeans on from the day. His SAS uniform was draped over the bench in the middle of the locker space. He saw them approach and he quickly threw his shirt on before sitting on the bench and tying his more casual shoes up. He folded the uniform quickly and tucked it into a metal locker within the larger space.   
  
“You were getting much better on those final shots,” Mark praised her while putting his own zip up jacket on. He grabbed another one out of the metal locker and handed it to her. “You can borrow this one until we get back to the staff quarters. Timur is looking cold and probably wants his back.”   
  
Anna took the second sweater and removed the one she had on. She passed it to Timur with gratitude. Timur smiled and threw it around him and jostled it to get comfortable. Anna slid into Mark’s extra sweater. It was a hoodie with the SAS winged dagger on it and she immediately felt unworthy of wearing it.

“We should head back now,” Timur looked at Mark. “Zero’s _ strong _ suggestion.”   
  
Mark paused when locking the gate to his locker. He looked up to Timur before nodding slowly and motioned for Anna to start heading back. Timur broke the silence.   
  
“But... Anna would be a good sniper with more training, I think.”   
“That’s a lot coming from you.”   
“Yes. She got into it by the end for sure.”   
  
Anna was trying to pick up on the urgency they both had. Their tension was making her anxious and paranoid.  _ I hope they are actually armed in case anything happens... _ The walk back to the main building was a quick one. The men insisted on walking on either side of her.

\-----

Timur quickly parted ways with them when they got inside. Mark escorted Anna right down to her quarters and they went inside.   
  
“I won’t be able to stay tonight. I hope you sleep well,” Mark gave a half smile and started to leave. Anna grabbed the door to prevent it from closing.   
  
“What was all of that about? All three of you seemed tense.”   
“I don’t know. I’m going to find Sam and ask.”   
  


Anna stared at him, worried, but eventually let go of the door. Before Mark left, he gave her a warning: “sleep in your shoes tonight.”

\-----

Anna laid in the dark, fully clothed, on the bed. She kept stroking her hand where the RFID chip bump lay beneath her skin. She went over the events of the day. Napping with Mark this morning, she hadn’t gotten a moment to ask him about the ‘professional boundaries’. The implants. The range. Timur’s flirting and sniper skills. Food. Her stomach growled. There’s no way she was getting up to go get food. She wouldn’t be able to keep it down anyways. Everything was silent and she didn’t like that.   
  
Anna pressed her chip for three seconds until she felt it activate.   
  
Click, click, click, click, click. (Just checking in.)   
  
_ Buzz. _ (Wait.)  _ Dit, dit, pause, dah, dit. _ (I.N.)   
  
Click, click. (Affirmative.)   
  
She put her hands behind her head and stayed staring at the ceiling. Anxiety was coursing through her veins.  _ Gathering information still... I wonder if they’re having a meeting? _ Anna laid staring at the ceiling, now revising escape plans. She knew some common paths through the building but she wished she had paid attention to hiding spots better. She got lazy, too comfortable, and now there might be danger?  _ This is why you don’t stay too long... this is why you don’t keep contact with people you care about. This is how you keep yourself and them safe. You broke your own rules. _ She laid in the bed recalling what grounds looked like, where she could go and what routes to the road she could take.   
  
_ Buzz. _ (Incoming message.)  _ Dit, dit, dah, pause, dit, dit, dit, pause, dit, dit, dah, dit, pause, dah, dit, dah, dah.  _ (U.S.F.Y.)

Click, click. (Affirmative.)   
  
‘ _ Yes, you’re safe’ he says? Then what is going on? _

  
Anna hasn’t moved in what felt like an hour. The clock on the wall read midnight. There was a tapping at her door.   
  
“Is me,” Timur called through. Anna got up and went to the door. She peeked through the hole and saw that Timur was with Zero. She unlatched the other locks and opened the door to let them in.

“Sorry to bother you so late,” Zero started. “We have a mission that came up in Northern India. Mark might get deployed. This is a good time to figure out where you should be going as well.”

“I prefer to not know where I’m going,” Anna went back and sat on the edge of the bed. Timur sat in the desk chair and Zero remained standing. “Oftentimes I just grab the next flight out from an airport and might do that two or three times before settling somewhere for a couple of weeks.”

“We need to start somewhere.”

“Your pilot can take me to whatever airport he flies out of most often. And I can jump on a flight from there.”

“We will cover the cost of the flights.”

“Don’t worry about that… I can make things happen.”

Zero stared at her. “We don’t want you breaking the law.”

“Well what a shame,” Anna shrugged. “It's a little late for that.”

They stared at each other.

“You should give me a call if you are ever in Russia,” Timur broke the silence and handed her a piece of paper with Russian writing on it. “Or any of our operators. Reach out so we know where you are.”

Anna took it hesitantly but intentionally didn’t look at it right away.

“Is the writing of the head of police in Russia. You can make a letter and give to police to have you brought to Spetsnaz offices. I will find you.”

“I don’t know Russian well enough to draft a letter and make it sound natural.”

“I will help you.”

Timur pulled out another piece of paper and wrote out a short message in Russian. His writing was messy, tips of letters connected, natural serifs, but was still clear and legible.

Anna took another blank page and laid out both pages in front of her. She reviewed the Police Chief’s writing critically, and then compared it to Timur’s letters. She began to copy things out. It was good, uncanny, in its smoothness and accuracy.

“Do you have his signature anywhere?” Anna turned to Timur. His eyes flashed and he pulled out his phone. He flipped through some things and typed in others. Finally, he turned his phone around and showed her. It looked like a portal for Spetsnaz resources.

She pulled over the page with Timur’s writing and wrote the signature slowly the first time. The second on the actual letter was faster, loose, and exact. Anna handed the fake letter to Timur for inspection.

“And I thought  _ I _ was good with a pencil,” Timur tutted and handed it back. “Looks good. It will get you to where I can get you.”   
  


“What does the letter say?” Zero asked. He was impressed with the ease that Anna worked and was starting to feel hesitant with letting her back out into the world.

“Eh, something like this:

_ Operator, _

_ This woman is a resource to Team Rainbow. Escort her to Spetsnaz officers as soon as possible. _

Then the signing.”

“Thank you for not including my name,” Anna folded the letter up and tucked it into her pocket. “The first place that I need to go will need to have some good clothing stores… I’ve been in this outfit for far too long now.”

“We can accommodate for that,” Zero said. “Might just send you back to Germany with Jäger. He can tour you around and make sure you have everything that you need. Blitz is due to head back to Germany in the next couple of days so we can send him home with you.”

“Jäger? Blitz? Who’s the pilot?”

“Yes, Marius Streicher is Jäger, the pilot. Good guy, a little weird. Blitz has been here for a while. Elias Kötz is his name.”

“I think I saw him in the medical bay. Something about a shield?”   
“That would be him.”   
“Germany it is, then. Are they able to get me to a public airport then or some private airport?”   
“I’m sure you can talk that over with them. Marius loves to fly.”   
“When do I head out?”   
“You’ll head out when they deploy. Probably tonight once they decide on who is going.”

“Okay…”   
  
Anna took a deep breath. “My German sucks. This’ll be fun. Ha!”   
  
“I’m sure you’ll be fine. Elias and Marius will take care of you.” Zero crossed his arms. “For now, we should get going. Be ready at any moment to head out.”   
  
“I don’t exactly have a lot to pack. You tell me when and I’ll be good.”   
  
\-----

Anna held her chip for three seconds.   
  
_ Dit, dit, pause, dah, dit, dit, pause, dit, pause, dah, dit, dah, dah. _ (I, DE, Y)   
  


Timur and Zero left and Anna was just laying on her bed now. She figured that Mark would appreciate her telling him that she was going to Germany. A relatively safe country and with Rainbow Operators.   
  
_ Buzz, buzz. _ (Affirmative.)

_ It’s like 3 am now… I need rest before flights. You know you hate sleeping on flights... _   
  
_ Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz.  _ (Just checking in.)

Click, click. (All clear.)   
  
_ I’m going to miss you Mark. I don’t think we’re going to meet again for a long time. We shouldn’t have even met now. _

_ Dah, dit, dit, pause, dit, dah, dah, dit, pause, dah, dit, dah, dah, pause, dah, dit, dit.  _ (D. P. Y. D.)  _ Dit, dit, pause, dah, dit. _ (IN)   
  
_ Deployed. India. Won’t get to say goodbye either. Maybe it’s better this way. I will expect someone coming along here soon. _   
  
Click, click. (Affirmative.)

Tap, tap on the door.   
  
Anna stood up and looked out the hole. There was a man in a German uniform and helmet. His face was half covered and he had his hands in his pockets. “Miss Anna? I hear that we are taking you to Germany for a shopping trip! VIP experience I assure you! Private flight and everything!”   
  
Anna couldn’t help but smile. He seems nice. She took a deep breath and opened the door. Elias bowed and aimed his hands down the opposite end of the hall from where she was used to. Trusting him, Anna started to walk. The SAS hoodie was folded neatly on the desk back in the room.   
  
\-----

The helicopter touched down in Germany and was taxied into a hangar bay. Anna was helped off by Elias before he went back onto the helicopter to retrieve his shield and bags. She had offered to help him but he would allow no such thing.   
  
She timidly stood to the side while Elias and Marius unpacked some of their belongings. Marius had to do a post-flight check before they could head out. She was back into routine.  _ Large room, hangar door is closed now but there is a door to the outside. I saw some of the highways on the way in so I could at least navigate a little bit. _   
  
They walked her out through the police station and out to their vehicles. Elias took off most of his police identifying gear and stashed it into the trunk. Marius leaned on the car and he was chattering away.  _ I’m getting hungry, but I don’t want to waste too much time. _   
  
“My friend! I am going to get you in contact with my sister,” Elias directed that at Anna. “She loves to shop and I’m sure she will know just the stores to get you a new wardrobe! I will tag along to translate.   
  
“But first! Lunch!” Elias closed the trunk and clapped Marius on the back. “Danke! Bis später.”   
  
Marius waved at them and headed back inside. Elias got into the vehicle as did Anna.

\-----

Anna was finished eating a nice bowl of fårikål now that the colder seasons have set in. The broth warmed her up nicely from the inside. She took a sip of her steamy tea and looked out the restaurant window to the dark sky. It makes it easy to hide, but it’s not the same. She might try somewhere warmer next.  _ Maybe the US. Could do Egypt or something too. _

_ Buzz. _   
  
Anna looked down to her hand and set her mug back down on the table.

_ Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz. _ (Just checking in.)   
  
Click, click. (All clear.)   
  
Her hand made no response. She wishes it had. So she sent another message.   
  
_ Dah, dit, pause, dah, dah, dah, pause, dit, dah, dit.  _ (NOR)  _ Dah, dah, pause, dit, dit, pause, dit, dit, dit, pause, dit, dit, dit, pause, dit, dit, dah. _ (Miss U)

She got an answer from that one.   
  
_ Dit, dit, dah, pause, dit, dit, dah, dah, dah.  _ (U 2)  _ Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz.  _ (Are you available?)

Click, click. (Yes.) Click. (Wait.)

_ Buzz, buzz. _ (Affirmative.)

_ This is weird. _ Anna never really got used to the idea of the chip in her hand. She was so sure that Mark would check in on her more than he has but he has only reached out twice in the past 10 weeks. Once to tell her that the mission went well, and now.  _ Why now? _   
  
She tossed some cash down onto the table and waved goodbye to the server. Anna has always been generous with tips. She feels like a Robin Hood when giving out someone else’s money to people that work hard. She smiled to herself as she exited the restaurant and descended the steps.

She braced against the wind and took refuge in the parking lot between vehicles. She dug the cell phone out of her purse and held her wrist to it, holding the chip in for five seconds. The screen lit up and Dokkaebi’s little spirit face shone on the screen. There was a buzzing in her wrist that acted like a dial tone. Sound came from the speaker.   
  
“Norway, huh?” Mark sounded tired. “Looking to finish the social media tour with Håvard?”   
  
“Hell no.” Anna shot back. Mark laughed. “It’s good to hear your voice.”   
  
“Have things been smooth for you? No trouble?”   
“Nothing. I took a few flights from Germany, to Romania, and then to Estonia. I took a boat across to Norway.”   
“Sounds like a tour.”   
“Yeah…” The wind kicked up and Anna shuttered.   
“What’s going on?”   
“I was just assaulted by a cold breeze. All good. I should go back to my hotel though…”   
“Yeh…”   
Silence.   
“Where will you go next?”   
“Undecided. Somewhere warmer for sure. I was thinking about Africa possibly.”

“That would be nice.”

Silence.

Mark sighed.   
“I really do miss you, though.”   
“I know. I miss you too Anna...”   
Anna sighed. “It’s getting late there and you sound exhausted. You should tuck in.”

“Trying to kick me off the phone, yeh?”   
“Of course not. Just paranoid. You know me.”   
“Come to England.”   
Anna paused.   
“It’s not particularly warm here…”   
“I can’t… I should go. It was good talking to you.”   
“Anna… I didn’t mea-”   
  
She disconnected the call.  _ Mark, please understand… if I see you in York, I may not actually leave. _ Anna picked herself up from the ground and started walking to the bus stop.


	13. Holidays

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna and Mark get some time alone in England.

**Chapter Thirteen - Holidays**

**What do you think of the plot so far? Pacing? Do you like MutexAnna or would you like to see GlazxAnna or even Escaped/Freed Anna? Things are about to get exciting!!**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette   
Mark R “Mute” Chandar

  
**Location:**   
St. Brelade, Jersey

York, England, UK

_ Why a British Island? _ Anna asked herself on her flight over to Jersey. She had a hotel waiting for her in St. Brelade along the shore. She was hoping for somewhere different but would be happy with the Christmas markets here with the pretty string lights, singing, and shopping. She could use a few more winter outfits anyways. And why not be in the giving spirit? She’ll buy some extra kids clothing and donate it all.  _ At least there won’t be snow... _

The plane landed and was taxied to the gate. She fixed her long red wig and hat before grabbing her carry on and exiting. She walked down to pick up her luggage and headed towards the door to leave the airport.   
  
_ Buzz. Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz.  _ (Incoming message. Just checking in.)

Anna stood to the side and set her coat down on the handle to her luggage.  _ It’s only been eight weeks since the last message. _

Click, click. (All clear.)  _ Dit, dit, pause, dit, dah, dah, dah, pause, dit, pause, dah, dit, dah, dah. _ (I, JE, Y)

_ Buzz, buzz.  _ (Affirmative.)  _ Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz. _ (Are you available?)   
  
Click. (No).

_ Buzz, buzz.  _ (Affirmative)

Anna stepped out and hopped into a cab and told him where to take her. She settled into the back seat for the short ride and then set up in the hotel room. She collapsed onto the bed and stared at the ceiling. She got a flashback to the last night she was at the Rainbow Facility laying in bed, Mark was getting deployed. Zero and Timur were in her room planning her departure. It was months ago but she remembers it vividly. In hindsight, she wishes she had kept the SAS hoodie that Mark loaned her but she didn’t want to lose it.

Anna yawned. She stood up, set all the locks on the door, changed into pajamas, and started to tend to her wig. She needs to make a new style for tomorrow now so she doesn’t have to figure it out before breakfast.   
  
_ Buzz. _ (Incoming message.)   
  
Anna rolled her eyes and kept styling.

_ Dit, dah, dah, dah, pause, dit, pause, dah, dit, dah, dit.  _ (JE, C?)

_ What city am I in? You’re not coming... _

_ Dah, dit.  _ (No.)

Anna finished a half up, half down style with a braid. Her hand started buzzing constantly. She sighed and dug her phone out of her purse. She held it up to her wrist and held the chip until the call answered. She curled up on the bed and waited for him to speak.   
  
“I was going to bring you a bottle of wine and wish you a happy Christmas while you were in my end of the world,” Mark said calmly.   
  
“You know I’m not allowed to see you…” Anna said, defeated.

  
“Who gave that rule to you?”   
“I did.”   
“Why?”   
Silence.   
“I know you’re still there.”   
Silence.   
  
Anna hung up. She couldn’t handle this right now. She wanted more than anything to curl up in bed beside him and sleep.  _ Oh God, the sleep was so good. _ It’s been years since she had restful sleep and even just having him there… She was out like a light. It was like drinking cold water when you’re thirsty.   
  
Her phone rang again in her hand and in her hand. Dokkaebi’s spirit was illuminated on the screen. Anna waited, debating whether to answer or not. She held in her chip.   
  
“These chips weren’t supposed to be used like this, Mark…”   
“Anna. Please don’t hang up on me like that.”   
Silence.   
“It makes me think you’re getting grabbed by someone or something.”   
Anna felt guilty. “Sorry… I just… I need to try and sleep. I haven’t slept in nearly thirty hours…”   
“That’s not good.”   
“I know. Anxiety is a bitch. I just took six flights over from Serbia.”   
Silence from Mark this time.   
“Believe me… I wish you  _ were _ here. Talking to you is just a tease.”   
“Tease?”   
“I’m keeping out of England to keep you safe… Or at least not telling you when I’m there.”   
“Have you been to England?” Mark asked sternly.   
“I was in London for a two hour layover. That’s all.”

Silence from both of them.   
“Try and sleep, Anna.”   
“Good night...”   
“Night.”   
  
The call ended and she laid back onto the bed and slept without getting much rest.

\-----

Anna was thoughtful the next day when she went to have breakfast. She did her normal safety room scans before she sat down. It was cold out for sure. It’s Christmas eve after all. She had a cuppa, some pastries, eggs, and fruit. She ate methodically to ensure nothing was going to hurt her. She talked to the servers and asked what shops they recommend for gifts for kids and for clothing. They gave her some suggestions.   
  
She set out that day and picked up some new warm clothes. She loved the ability to pay with her hand and all the people that worked at the shops were amazed with the technology. They understandably had a lot of questions and Anna was okay to take a moment here and there to answer them.   
  
She popped into the kid friendly stores next and grabbed several bags worth of toys and clothes to donate.  _ Thank you AMEX. _ She dropped them off and quickly retreated to her hotel room. She always felt good being able to donate to hospitals and charities.

One little toy she decided to keep though… She ran her fingers along the edges and smiled. Tomorrow was Christmas but she wouldn’t be able to track him down by then. She pulled up her phone and booked a flight to London in three days.

\-----

_Buzz._ _Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz._ (Incoming message. Are you available?) 

Mark thanked the barista for his afternoon tea and took a seat at one of the tables in the cafe.   
  
Click, click. (Yes.)

His hand started buzzing and he pulled out his phone.   
  
“Hey.”   
“Hey. I’m in England… thought you would want to know.”   
“Where?”

“Well that’s no fun, is it?”   
“Anna…”   
“Close by. At this moment, I’m looking up at York Minster.”

Mark paused. “I’m on my way.”

Mark hung up the phone and threw his jacket on. He went back up to the staff and the counter and asked for his tea as take-away instead. They quickly transferred it to a cup, added a lid, and handed it back to him. He walked out the door and within ten minutes, he was in the vicinity. His hand was buzzing again. He pulled out his phone and answered the call from Anna.   
  
“Don’t go too far now. You walked right by me.”   
“I didn’t see you. Where are you?”   
“I’ll give you some hints. You can still see me directly. I am sitting. And I’m wearing a wig. Red.”   
  


Mark flipped around to behind him. Scanning anyone that wasn’t standing.

“Closer!”

Mark made eye contact with Anna and they each hung up their phones. She stood up from the short wall by the South African War Memorial and grabbed her bag.   
  
“You didn’t bring me tea? Rude!” Anna joked with a laugh.

  
“I wasn’t expecting you. When did you get here?” Mark slid his phone into his jacket pocket.

  
“Yesterday. I had to track you down to see if you were here or Hereford.” Anna smiled. “I was thinking of staying here until after New Years at least.”   
  
“That’s not long,” Mark shifted on his feet. “Only a few days. I thought you stayed weeks in areas?”   
  
“I haven’t ruled that out. I can’t make too many promises though.”   
“Where are you staying?”   
“A hotel only about a 15 minute walk away. Not far at all.”   
“You know you could cancel your reservation and stay with me.”   
“I know, but I would rather have a backup in case you have to get shipped out to somewhere.”   
“I’m on leave from both until mid January.”

Anna’s heart fluttered. “Really?”

“Please stay.”

“I’ll talk to the hotel staff about it… Ooor, you could join me at the hotel. The bed is massive, the shower is basically magic on sore shoulders, and the balcony has a view of the Museum.” Anna said, trying to entice him.   
  
“I’m more comfortable at my flat,” Mark shot down the idea. He took a sip of his tea and countered her. “I have sweaters that smell like me, bed is an okay size, shower… works. Unlimited tea. No balcony, but my window faces the river.”

“Deal,” Anna sighed and smiled. “My reservation ends tomorrow morning anyways. I’ll have to grab my bags if you want to come with?”   
  
\-----

Mark parked his car and Anna looked out the front windshield. He stepped out of the car and grabbed one of her bags from the back seat. Anna grabbed the other and followed him inside. There were only about four units in the building, and the parking was hidden in behind. There were also several layers of security that Anna could see.  _ No wonder he likes this place _ .   
  
He welcomed her inside and set her luggage down just inside the door. She stepped in and set her carry on down beside the luggage. She slipped her shoes off and walked up to the window where she peeked through the curtain to the river. She turned around and Mark was smiling at her. “What?”

“You look like you fit here in England is all.” Mark said honestly.

Anna smirked and returned to her bags. She opened her carry on.   
  
“I’m sorry that I missed Christmas with you. The wine would have been lovely, I was just… exhausted.” Anna grabbed something wrapped in a bag and closed the carry on. “I saw this in Jersey and took it as a sign.”

She handed the bag to Mark who opened it. It was a game that the two of them used to play as kids. Mancala. It was a beautiful rich mahogany wood board with engraved sides, a removable lid, and the stones were all glass and colourful.

“Wow, for me?” Mark whispered. Anna nodded. “Thank you.” He set it down and gave her a hug. It was exactly what she needed.

He gave her a short tour of the flat. It was large for where they were but still relatively small. The entrance went into the main living space with the kitchen off to the left separated by a wall. A small table sat in the kitchen where Anna assumed he ate. A short corridor to the right with the toilet, second bedroom (his office), and his own bedroom with an en-suite. There was also storage along the one side. His living room had a comfortable couch, a low table covered in textbooks and science magazines, and some extra seating.   
  


Quite soon, the two of them were putting the Mancala board to the test over biscuits and tea. Anna had removed the main pieces of her disguise - the wig and contact lenses - and they sat on the floor on either side of his living room table. Anna seemed to be having a hard time keeping up with Mark’s moves. She was getting frustrated in a playful competitive way. He smiled and just kept planning ahead.   
  
“Okay, if you can get more stones than me on this next turn, I will pay for take-away. If I get more, you pay,” Mark wagered.   
  
“There is no way in hell I’m agreeing to that,” Anna shook her head and looked up at the ceiling. She laughed and looked at the board, finally grabbed one pocket’s worth and distributed them. She got one stone in ‘home’. Mark took his turn, also got one in ‘home’, but also stole some of Anna’s stones by landing in an empty pocket. He won the turn 4 to 1.   
  
“Stooop,” Anna put her hand to her head with a grin. “How did I get so bad at this? We used to be pretty even.”   
  
Mark grinned knowingly.   
  
“You didn’t... “ Anna’s mouth fell open. “Did you let me win before?”   
  
Mark laughed. Anna picked up a stone and tossed it at him. He caught it and put it back into the pocket she took it from. She sighed and pulled another pocket. “What take-away am I buying us?”

“Could do noodles, could do curry, sandwiches, pizza,” Mark suggested, taking more of her stones. Anna leaned back against the couch and just shook her head.

“I’m done, I give up.”

“Don’t be like that. Let’s eat and then finish. I think noodles would be good with how cold it is outside.”

“You call, I pay.”   
  
\-----

He was right as he normally was. She needed food. The game wrapped up pretty quickly but Anna had more fun after she ate. She hadn’t won a single game but Mark paid anyways, claiming that she never actually agreed to the wager. He cleaned off a section of his bookcase by the kitchen and displayed the case neatly.

Anna was looking out the window again. Mark came up behind her and looked out as well.   
  
“In North America, it’s tradition to have a kiss at midnight on New Years… Is it the same here?” Anna asked.   
  
“Yeah,” He replied offhandedly. Anna nodded, blushing. He looked down to her and smirked. “Why? Do you want to practice?”   
  
“Oh my G-” Anna turned away and laughed. “I mean… we could. If you wanted.”

She felt her face get hot as she looked up at him. Mark stared at her with a smile. She broke eye contact, clearly embarrassed. He pulled her in and brought his face close to hers, their noses touching. Anna looked him in his eyes and touched his face. She pulled him in a little and she kissed him. He kissed back.


	14. Physical (NSFW)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Content Warning:  
> This chapter contained descriptions of sex and sexual acts. There is nothing too far past vanilla sex here so use your judgment on whether you wish to proceed with the chapter or if you want to skip to the next chapter. The next chapter will not experience any breaks in the flow of the overall plot but will allude to the content of this chapter.

**Chapter Fourteen - Physical (Explicit - Can be skipped)**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette   
Mark R “Mute” Chandar

  
**Location:**   
York, England, UK

Anna started to kiss a little more aggressively now. Mark pulled the two of them away from the window and sat down on the couch. He pulled Anna to sit beside him, but she decided to sit straddling him instead. He pulled her face back in and started kissing again. Her tongue went into his mouth and danced with his. Mark slid one of his hands down her side and rested it where her hip meets her thigh. She ran her fingers through his hair. His hand started to slide back up and went under the hem of her sweater, touching her skin. Anna grabbed it and slid it further up under her soft sweater without breaking the kiss. Mark simply wrapped it around her waist and pulled her body against his.   
  
Anna moved her head away and looked at him tenderly. “We can go to your bedroom… if you’d like?”   
  
“Do you want to?” Mark asked. Anna smiled and nodded. “I don’t have protection.”

“I have an IUD. It’s all good, I trust you.”   
  
Mark grabbed her under her thighs and stood up, carrying her. She wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. He walked her to the bedroom and set her down gently on the bed. He grabbed bits of his uniform from off the blanket and put it on top of the dresser. When he turned back to face Anna, she was slipping her sweater off to reveal a soft lace bralette. He smirked and followed suit.   
  
He climbed onto the bed next to her and started to trace her scars with his finger. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there to stop all this.”   
  
“It’s in the past, Mark.”   
“I know, there are just so many…”   
  
Anna reached out and touched a palm width scar on his chest. He looked down to where her hand sat. She caressed up his neck and brought his face down to hers again. She kissed him deeply and he nibbled on her lip. They looked at each other again. Mark nuzzled under her jaw and kissed her neck. He slowly traced down her body with kisses. He could feel her skin twitch under his lips. He tucked two fingers under the waist of her jeans and looked up to her for permission.   
  
Anna nodded. He unbuttoned her denim and slid them down over her hips. She propped herself up to allow them to be removed. He resumed kissing her stomach while Anna kicked off her socks. He touched the inside of one of her thighs gently before bringing his face back level to hers.   
  
“I don’t know how far you want to go.”   
“I haven’t had anything like this in… years. Mark, I’m… I’m good for anything.”

He kissed her deeply and played with her hair. She ran her hand down his chest, noting how muscular he’s gotten over the years. He propped himself up and took off his own pair of jeans. He was hard in his tight boxers but kissed Anna before she could react. He reached behind her and unlatched her bralette letting the straps fall loose over her shoulders.   
  
Anna slid it off and tossed it across the room. Mark immediately started to kiss her breasts which got her to breathe heavily, excited. His hand was exploring her stomach and grabbed on to her hip. Anna pressed her hips against him with desire to keep going. Mark picked up on her movements and climbed between her legs. From this perspective, he got a good look at exactly how scarred up she was.

She had one long scar from about her belly button down and across her right hip. She also had what looked like a burn on her upper left thigh. Mark felt guilt and his posture loosened. Anna took his hands and brought them up her stomach, over her breasts, and up beside her head. She kissed him again.   
  
“We… don’t have to continue…” She said to him quietly.   
  
“No, I want you.” He replied. She wasn’t sure if he said ‘you’ or ‘to’ but it didn’t matter. He was petting her through her underwear now and she let out a purr. She planted her hand firmly behind his neck and whimpered to his face. Goosebumps traced up her arms and her eyes closed, mouth slightly agape. Mark was kissing her chest again.   
  
He started to slide her underwear off and Anna quickly propped herself up to have them be removed. Mark also removed his own and dropped them both over the edge of the bed. Mark kneeled between her legs again and leaned into her, kissing her on the lips. “You’re sure?”   
  
“Mark,” Anna stared at him. “Please fuck me.”   
  


He smiled and thrust deep into her. They both shuddered at the sensation.  _ It’s been too long _ , Anna thought.  _ I needed this so bad. _ She moaned in her throat.   
  
Mark held himself up and kept thrusting. Anna wrapped her arms up over his shoulders and ran her nails up his back. He went faster, she was so wet that there was barely any friction. He lowered his head to be next to hers but barely made any sound. She touched his hair and whispered “this is so good…”

The little bit of encouragement kept Mark going. He kissed her neck, nuzzled her ear, and just… listened to her. Her modest vocalizations just made this moment more erotic for him. He slowed and pushed himself up so he kneeled between her thighs again. He was still inside her but stopped moving. His arms needed a break.   
  
Anna glanced up at him, and finally got a good look. She threw her head back into the pillow and started to play with her own breasts. “Fuck, why are you so hot?” She asked pathetically. He laughed and lowered himself back down on top of her. She let go of herself and pulled his face in. “If you make yourself cum first, you have to pay for breakfast… if you make me cum first, I’ll pay.”

“You’re on,” Mark smirked. He gave her a quick kiss on her neck and started pounding deep into her while making eye contact. Anna tilted her head back and closed her eyes again, taking in everything. He took her hands in his, interlocking their fingers, and held them above her shoulders. Anna felt pinned but instead of being scared, she felt calm.  _ Trust is a hell of a drug _ . Her breasts bounced with every hip to hip contact but she was getting over stimulated. She squeezed one of his hands to let her go which he did. She guided him by his neck to lay on her, and she wrapped her legs around him.   
  
“I just need a second,” She breathed. “I-” He let her other hand go and she hugged him close. He played with her hair again while she took a moment. He gave her a deep kiss. “I really needed this… I really needed you.”   
  
“Me, too.” Mark agreed. He propped himself up once more and started going back at it. Anna reached down and started playing with her clitoris. He could feel the difference in her tightness as she hit the right spot. He kept his movement steady while she writhed and twitched below him. She was moaning again and it was addictive to him. Her other hand slid up his bicep to his shoulder and cupped his cheek briefly before she dragged her fingertips down his chest again. This seemed to set her off completely and her body locked up, her moan was louder.

“Oh, fuck,” Anna removed her hand from herself and pushed him off. She curled up on the bed and shook, breathing heavy. Her arms were wrapped around herself. Mark brushed the hair from her face and kissed her.   
  
“I won.”   
“Shut up.”

He smiled and kissed her shoulder. 

“Give me just a minute and you can get yours.”   
“No rush.”   
  
Mark laid down beside her and gently brushed his hand over her outer thigh. She shivered at that and half rolled to face him. He pulled her in by her chin and kissed her deeply. She cupped his face with her hand. The kiss broke naturally, and she set her forehead against his. They both had a light layer of sweat.   
  
They cuddled for a little while and Mark started to get soft. Anna noticed and kissed him again. “I should be good to go again if you want to finish up?”   
  
“I won’t ask that of yeh,” He laid his head on the pillow. Anna playfully pushed him onto his back and climbed on top of his hips, straddling him.   
  
“Are you sure?” She smirked, placing her hands on his chest. He grabbed her hands with his and pulled one to his mouth and kissed her wrist.   
  
“Only if you want to,” He challenged. “I’m ready.” Anna reached down and angled Mark’s hard cock so that she could lower herself onto it. She moaned a little when it entered. She was still sensitive from her orgasm. She started to bounce her hips up and down on his and he watched. He threw his head back again into the pillow.   
  
She kept going despite her thighs starting to burn. He started to caress her body and pulled her forward. She leaned in, breasts pressed against his chest, and kissed him. From this angle, she could keep bouncing. Mark bit her lip again and made eye contact. He then bit his own lip in an attempt to keep quiet. Anna sat back up tall to give him a show and some longer strokes. He watched intently but mostly, he looked up at her face and her expression. His hands were exploring her hips and thighs.   
  
“I-” Mark took a deep inhale and grabbed her hips and held her down against him. He seemed to be holding the breath in his chest making it swell. She felt him twitch inside of her. She leaned down and kissed his neck softly and ran her fingers through his hair one more time. His grip on her softened, as did he.

  
“You what?”   
“I’m happy you decided to come here instead…”   
  
It clearly wasn’t what he was going to say but she smiled anyways. “I’m happy you got me to cum.” He didn’t pick up on the pun. He reached up and put his face in his hands while taking another deep breath. On the exhale, he wrapped his arms around Anna and laid there. They were in bliss, hormones coursing through both of them. Anna pushed herself up off of him.   
  
“I should clean up.”   
“There are face cloths in the second drawer down.” He vaguely pointed at the counter in the adjoining master bathroom. She moved to the end of the bed and stepped onto the floor. She walked to the bathroom. Mark watched her and noticed scars in the shape of Xs on her back and what looked like another pair of initials carved into her skin just under her butt.   
  
He frowned as she closed the door behind her. He stretched and took some tissues from the nightstand. He wiped himself clean as much as he could and just laid there. He wasn’t expecting that, but was pleased. He heard the toilet flush and the tap turn on. He moved himself up a little more on the bed and sat leaning into the pillows. Anna emerged and picked up both pairs of underwear from the floor. She tossed him his and slid hers back on. She retrieved her bralette and also put it back on. She turned and Mark had his boxers on again. He tapped his chest to invite her over to cuddle.


	15. Days

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark treats Anna to a delightful day but the evening gives them a surprise!

**Chapter Fifteen - Days**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette   
Mark R “Mute” Chandar

  
**Location:**   
York, England, UK

December 30 -

Anna’s eyes fluttered awake. She was curled up in Mark’s arms in his bed, both just in their underwear. She started to lift herself up, and rolled to face him. He was already awake and on his phone.   
  
“Good morning,” He said, setting his phone down on the nightstand “How’d you sleep?”   
  
“Like a baby,” Anna collapsed again and draped her arm over his bare chest. “Thank you for being so respectful last night. It was… good. Really good. Really needed.”   
  
Mark kissed the top of her head and wrapped his arms around her. “We should get up.”   
  
“I don’t wanna,” She laughed then yawned.   
  
“I know, but I’m hungry and I’m sure you are too.” Mark said. “And I think we could both use a shower.”   
  
\-----

Anna was in the guest toilet and doing her makeup for the day. Simple eyeliner with a wing, false lashes, blue contacts, a darker lipstick to match the season, and a little shine to her cheeks. The cold air gave her a natural blush. She was settling her red wig into place when Mark came up to the door putting a clean shirt on.   
  
“So what’s the plan for today?” She asked.   
  
“You owe me breakfast because of your little wager last night,” He started. “And then anything you want.”   
  
Anna added her little knit hat to her head and pinned it in place.   
  
“You look so different with all this on.”   
“That’s the point. We all have our uniforms...”   
“Is this how you felt when you saw me?”

Anna sighed and leaned against the counter to look at him.   
  
“Possibly,” She looked down. “But you looked actually scary to me. You looked dangerous. I just look… different.”

He leaned against the door frame while she adjusted her sweater to alter the shape of her body. She looked over to him with flirty eyes. “You have to admit though, I can pull it off.”   
  
“You could pull almost anything off.” He replied. Anna smiled.

“You should show me around the historic sites,” She said, flattening her long skirt. “I would love to know them from your perspective.”

“Sure,” Mark smiled at her. She squeezed past him at the door and he couldn’t help but think how natural it felt. It’s like this is where she belongs.

——-

Anna fluffed up her scarf a little more before taking a sip of her tea.  _ Green tea with honey, mmmm.  _ Mark had tea as well but a little more classic - orange pekoe with sugar and milk. They were back at the York Minster since they didn’t get to do any exploring yesterday. Mark told her about the history here, several events from the area, and what led up to them. He seemed quite passionate about it.

“Wow,” was all Anna could say as she looked up at the walls. “It must have taken them so long to actually design and build this place.”

“Two hundred and fifty years if I recall… starting in the 1200s.” Mark replied.

“That’s dedication.”

“That’s the power of religion in a time where nothing made sense.”

Anna couldn’t help but agree. Faith was a powerful thing.

Mark led her a little further down the path. Anna laughed at something he said. From behind a tree, a man stood in shadow watching them. A young woman popped out behind him and asked who they were.

“They’re... interesting,” replied the man.

——-

“The library is down this way,” Mark pointed ahead of them. “A lot of religious books so it’s not really my thing but there is a lot of history in there too.”

“Reading a paper book is a luxury for me.” Anna looked up and him. He paused and stopped walking so Anna went up to him. She hugged his arm.

“Is everything okay?”

“I thought I saw someone, sorry. Let’s keep going.”

“Who?”

“Someone I know.”

Anna let go of him and her smile dropped. They quickly went off down the path together. The man and young woman were huddled up behind a hedge out of sight. The man was chuckling at his cellphone. Quickly, he sent the message.

——-

Mike was just arriving at the Rainbow Facility in Greece when his phone went off.

“Bloody hell,” He said, arms full of equipment. “Why can’t people just call?” He dropped everything just inside the door and pulled out a phone and clicked the screen on. There was a picture of Mark and Anna in the park. James labelled it as ‘Mark has a girlfriend’.

——-

Mark exited the path alone while James jumped out to scare him. Mark didn’t scare.

“Where’s your lady friend, Mark? Eh?” He teased.

“What lady friend?”

“The one that was huggin’ yeh!”

“She was getting followed by some guys so I escorted her to the library to call the police.”

“I don’t think so.”

“I wouldn’t lie to yeh, Porter.”

“What are you doin’ here all alone?”

“Drinking tea.”

James stared at him.

“Dad, can we go please? I still need to go to a few other sites…“ A woman called out from behind him.

“Ah, this is my daughter, Mark. She has some research for history so she can get into a good school. She’s smart. Thinkin’ of Cambridge.”

“Cambridge is good. I recommend it.”

“You can tell your girlfriend that it was nice to meet her.”

“I’ll be sure to tell her when I get one, James.”

James waved his hands in the air dismissively and walked off with his daughter. Mark stood there and watched them leave. Once satisfied, he clicked his hand and Anna came out from a branch on the path.

“Do you think he bought it?”

“Probably not.”

“Does that bother you.”

“Not much.”

Anna smiled. “Let’s keep going then?”

——-

December 31 -

Anna woke before Mark did this morning. It was still pitch black outside. She looked at the clock…  _ 0421\. Won't be able to fall back asleep now. Damn nightmares.  _ She quickly took a shower and went to make tea. She blew on the top surface of it and took a sip.  _ Nice and sweet. _ She walked into the living room and browsed the shelf where the Mancala set was stored. What could she read for a short time?  _ Most of these are reference books, textbooks, various non-fiction, oh! Here is one. _ It was a classic fantasy series that Anna was also a fan of. She’s listened to the audiobooks of it, and saw the movies, but she never got to actually read the books.

She ran her hand over the spine. _Well worn, he’s read these a few times now… creased corners, little bits of tea stains._ _Well loved._ She sat herself down on the couch and tucked her legs under herself. She flipped open to page one.

It was a little over an hour later when Mark woke. He patted the bed beside him, it was cold. Panicked, he flipped over and looked at the bathroom but it was dark and silent. He scrambled out of the bed and heard papers flipping in the living room. He slipped into his office and grabbed a tactical knife. Holding it up, he snuck to the livingroom to find Anna on the couch intently staring at the book in her hands. She wasn’t even aware he had gotten up.

“Anna,” He exhaled, calmer now. She startled and looked up to him.

“Good morning!” Then she saw the knife… she quickly closed the book, stood and looked around, alert. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, just didn’t know where you were and I heard noises and… I came out here… I. It was just you. It’s okay…” He set the knife down on the table and gave her a hug and a kiss on the forehead. “Are you hungry?”

“Not yet. Dinner last night was a lot. I’m sorry to have worried you.”

“It’s okay. I’m going to shower.”

“I can make you food if you’d like? You can eat when you’re done.”

“Nah, stay on the couch. You looked cute there.”

Anna blushed and smiled shyly.  _ You remember that you have to leave, right? Don’t fall for him. Don’t you DARE even THINK of the L word. _

Mark smiled back and went to shower. Anna looked down.  _ I knew I shouldn’t have come here… I knew it would be heartbreaking... _

_ I wonder what we’re going to do for the New Year. If we’re going to stay in, go out, or what. _ Anna couldn’t focus on reading anymore and returned the book to the shelf. She sat cross legged on the couch thinking of where she’ll go next.  _ Taiwan? _

Mark was only gone for a few minutes before he came back out. Anna was inspecting the knife he had and looking thoughtful. “Be careful with that. I don’t want to have to patch up any fingers.”

“What are we doing tonight for New Years?” She asked, setting the knife down on the table. “Could do a pub?”

“My goal is to keep you safe. I even hid you from my own teammate, Anna. A pub is risky.”

“Sure, but on a major holiday like this? It’ll be packed. I’m good in crowds.”

“I’m not…”

“How about I try and lose you in a crowd today? You can try and hunt me down and I will come back to you if I see you struggling.”

“Sounds… uh.”

He didn’t finish that sentence and Anna could detect the scared tone of voice.  _ You already panicked him by not being in bed… he’ll lose it if you disappear in a crowd. _ “Mark, please remember that you don’t need to protect me at every moment.”

“I know.”

“I take care of myself.”

“I know.”

He sat down on the couch beside her and pulled her into him. She cuddled into his chest. He rubbed the parallel scars on her shoulder through her shirt.  _ He’s still feeling guilty about it… _

Anna kissed his chest through his clean hoodie and pushed herself off of him. He hesitated on letting her go. “I’m just getting changed into not pajamas.” She stood and walked to her suitcase in the bedroom.

She picked out a long blonde wavy wig, a hat with a fur pompom, a knit dress, thick tights, and a puffy vest. Over her tights, she added on cozy knee high socks for extra warmth and comfort. She returned looking different to the living room and it was Mark this time that was gone. As was the knife. She walked back down the hall and knocked on his office door. “You in there?”

“Yeh, come in.”

Anna creaked open the door and Mark was packing the knife and other stuff away. She didn’t enter but looked around. There was a long dark desk along one wall with a hutch above it. There were a ton of little boxes on the shelves filled with capacitors, resistors, wires, and all kinds of circuitry. There were various breadboards on a shelf to one side with various LEDs, chips, and wire loops on them. On the desk was a back box with antennas and handles with its cover off.

Mark stood and brushed off his knees. “I had some gear to put away.”

“No problem. I just have to do a little makeup and I’ll be ready for the day.”

Mark nodded in response. Her makeup was simple. A little bronze eyeshadow, false lashes, sharp eyeliner, and a rosy shade of lipstick.

“Like I said yesterday, you could pull anything off.” Mark smiled. “Blonde suits you I think.”

“Are you saying that I’m not smart?”

“Most people aren’t smarter than me.”

“I want to throw something at you in mock anger but I don’t have anything to throw.”

Mark laughed. “Let’s go out. I have an idea of something to do today.”

——

They had another full day of museum trekking. Anna told Mark about the art they had and the significance of the symbolism. She also discussed all the techniques they used to portray different fabrics and other methods of production. He asked her how she knew all of this and she told him more about her time working in museums doing restoration work. Mark in turn told her about the history of the structure and talked about the events from the exhibits.

They left smarter than they walked in and headed to an evening meal. She had a glass of wine with her food and her eyes sparkled in the dim atmospheric lighting. She… was happy. She’s really enjoyed her time here and anticipated kissing him when the bells toll at 12. Mark rushed her out the door for one last event.

They pulled up in his vehicle and parked near a dock. There was a beautiful riverboat there that did early evening tours and he got tickets for them. They climbed aboard and got to have a drink, small snacks, and got information about the city.

"I've never actually taken this tour. I wanted to see what they had to say." Mark whispered to her. They both learned a little bit and got to relax while doing so. The sunset from the boat was warm and glowing behind the clouds and a deep purple dusk set in. A few stars sparkled in the gaps of the overcast sky.

It was a simple but fun day. They left the boat once the tour got back to the dock and headed back to the car talking about the unique view and interesting tidbits that they learned.

Suddenly, someone stepped out in front of them with a pistol drawn. "The girl is coming with me."


	16. Nights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark and Anna have to deal with an attack.

**Chapter Sixteen - Nights**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette   
Mark R “Mute” Chandar

  
**Location:**   
York, England, UK

December 31 -

Mark pulled Anna behind him and faced the gunman.

"Don't be a hero," The stranger said, still pointing his weapon. Mark put his hands up defensively and didn't say anything. Anna was calm behind him. She turned quickly when another armed man came out from between vehicles. She looked around but there were no witnesses, no pedestrians. It was late and on New Years Eve. People were inside partying with friends, or at the pub, or away to London for the fireworks. "Give us the girl. We don't need you. Get down on the ground."

The second man ran up and grabbed Anna. She yelped and spun releasing herself but he was quick and managed to wrestle her to the ground. Mark started to turn to help but heard a click from the gun in the hands of the first man. "I  _ said _ get down on your knees."

"Do it," Anna breathed. He looked over to her. "I've got this…"

Mark complied helplessly. All he could do right now was trust Anna. The second man bound her wrists, gagged her, and pulled her into a vehicle nearby. Mark turned his attention to the first man.

The stranger got cocky and stepped towards Mark with a grin.  _ One step more you bastard _ . The man had his finger on the trigger and took the second step.

Mark leapt up and disarmed him quickly, hitting the man in the head with the butt of the pistol. He stumbled back and Mark caught him and smashed his head off the back of another nearby car, setting off the alarm. This caused the car with Anna in it to speed off.

Mark dashed to his own car and tried to follow the getaway car. He lost track of it quickly and stopped his vehicle. He pressed in the chip.

Click, click, click, click, click. (Just checking in.)

No response.

Mark repeated the message to more silence. He was panicking now but took some deep breaths to think.  _ Police. _

_ Buzz. _ (Wait.)  _ Buzz, buzz. _ (All clear.)  _ Dah. _ (T)

_ What? _ Mark ran through the message in his mind.  _ Wait, all clear, T? Wait. All clear. T. No… All clear, wait, T. Tea.  _ Mark smiled at her cleverness and sped off to the cafe where they went this morning. He parked across the street and opened his car door. He stood by the door just in case he needed cover from an attack. It was silent. He kept looking around to all the entrances to the area and saw no one. He felt exposed but needed to stay near for Anna. Did he have the right message? He started to doubt himself but shook it off.

It felt like forever before he heard a rock clicking against the cobblestone. He faced where the echo came from and saw a figure turn the corner, huddled over. Anna looked up to him and he ran over to her. Her wig and hat were gone. Her lip was bloodied and her cheek was a little puffy. She was holding her ribs.

Mark wrapped her arm around his neck and picked her up. He carried her back to the car and set her in the passenger seat. He climbed in on his side and Anna buckled herself in. He sped out, starting towards the hospital.

"No," Anna wheezed. "No doctors. I can clean myself up. I don't have coverage anyway."

Mark turned a corner. "I want you to get checked out."

"I'm fine."

"You're clearly not."

"I really am."

"How did you get away?"

"I kept kicking the back of his head until he went off the road. I opened the door and ran. He caught me and started hitting me but I grabbed his knife, stabbed him in the shoulder, cut the ropes off. He grabbed me by the hair but my wig slipped off and I kept running."

Mark quickly stole a glance at her with worry plastered all over his face.

"I'm okay. This is normal."

"I assure you this is not normal."

"It is for me."

Mark slowed the car to a stop and pulled over. He covered his mouth with his hand. He squeezed her knee with his other hand before pulling away and headed towards his flat. He wanted to carry her up the stairs but she refused. She went to take a shower and Mark pulled out a small military medical kit from his bag in his office. Anna came out in pajama pants and the SAS hoodie she wore months ago at the facility, her lip still bleeding, and her ribs bruised. She sat down on the couch facing him.

He applied a little salve to her swollen cheek, and a dab of Vaseline on her lip to help stop the bleeding. He couldn't do much for her ribs. As he was applying the gel to her lip, they heard all kinds of bangs and saw colourful flashes coming from behind the window curtain. Mark illuminated the screen of his phone.  _ 0000. _

"Happy New Year, Mark."

"... Happy New Year."

He kissed her gently and pulled her into a hug. She hugged back with one arm and closed her eyes against his chest. Muffed, she sang.

_ Should auld acquaintance be forgot _

_ And never brought to mind? _

_ Should auld acquaintance be forgot _

_ And days of auld lang syne? _

\-----

Anna awoke the next morning achy. She grabbed her ribs again and they were definitely tender. Her face didn’t hurt as much as she thought it would. A gentle touch told her that it was still puffy. She sat up in the bed to find Mark already awake. Not on his phone this time but just staring up at the ceiling.   
  
“G’mornin’,” Anna said, yawning.   
  
Mark didn’t answer, he just looked at her and played with her hair a little bit.   
  
“What?” Anna questioned his silence. He just shook his head. “You know I said that I was just staying until past New Years, right? I only have another day or so here. You knew that.”   
  
Silence.   
“Please say something.”   
Silence.   
“Anything?”   
“How often  _ do _ you get attacked like that?”   
“Almost... every country...”   
“Norway? Serbia? Estonia? Germany?”   
“Well to be fair, I was with the police in Germany…”   
“Anna… Did you get attacked at all those places?”   
“I mean, yes. Mostly just followed. I got out before anyone actually got around to, you know, the attacking me part of it.”   
  
Mark closed his eyes. She could tell that that wasn’t the answer he wanted to hear.   
  
“I’m not going to lie to you, Mark. I get targeted a lot. This is why I move around so much. This is why staying somewhere even presumed to be safe doesn’t mean that it actually is. It’s why I didn’t want to stay at the facility. It’s why I’m not going to stay here. I’m horrified knowing that those thugs even saw you with me. I’m worried about  _ you _ .”   
  
“It’s not me you should be worried about, Anna. I can handle myself. I-”   
“And I can handle  _ my _ self. I have gotten good at knowing criminals and how they try and puff up their chests and how they like to feel in control. I am good at escaping and running away. I endure. Besides, he could have shot you…”   
  
Mark didn’t like that answer either.   
  
“This was  _ nothing _ . I wouldn’t have used the chip to contact you over something like that. If they had actually gotten me somewhere, then yes, but I usually escape before or during transit.” Anna continued. He stared at her.   
  
“Oh don’t look at me like that. It was just a knife.”   
“Knives are dangerous.”   
“I know. And I’m fine.”   
“I know.”

“Okay… okay, so let's go to that little cafe that we saw yesterday and grab some pastr-”   
“ _ How _ do you want to go  _ out _ after last night?”

Anna sighed. “Mark, if I lived my life in fear, I would have died by my own hand at this point. I can’t let these things get to me because if I did, I would be absolutely… I would be a little ball of anxiety in some underground bunker somewhere. I would have no hope, no joy, no…” There was that perky L word again. “... I wouldn’t have anything good in my life. I refuse to hide. I  _ will _ live unapologetically. I  _ will _ thrive freely in the face of those who want to control me. I refuse them. We’re all going to die some day. I’ve come to terms with the fact that my day may come sooner than others’.”

He looked at her silently.   
  
“Let’s cuddle for a little longer, but we need to get up after that.” Anna laid back into the mattress. Mark laid into her chest this time. She rested her head on his and played with his hair hoping that it was soothing to him.   
  
\-----

Both Anna and Mark spent the morning making breakfast at his flat. Eggs, toast, jam, tea, and some fresh fruit. They ate in his office at his computer looking at places where Anna could go next. He had a few different maps pulled up on various monitors, the home countries of Rainbow operators highlighted. 

“Hong Kong?”   
“Protests.”   
“Could provide cover?”   
“No.”   
“Mexico. Haven’t been there in ages.”   
“Femicide.”

“I… okay. India.”   
“I was there earlier this year. Not safe yet.”   
“Nowhere is safe. Kenya?”   
“I don’t trust them fully.”   
“I could go cozy up with Timur in Russia.”   
Silence.   
“Joke. But Russia isn’t a terrible idea.”   
“It is with the politics currently.”   
“Spain, Poland, Korea. I don’t know what you’re looking for, Mark.”   
Silence.   
“Nowhere. Is. Safe. The USA?”

“Maybe.”   
“‘Maybe’ is better than ‘no’.”

Mark looked worn down.    
  
“You should call Harry and talk to him over the phone. Or maybe he can come here to talk to you. I don’t know.”   
“You’re the only other person besides me that has stepped foot into this flat.”   
It was Anna’s turn to be silenced. “You haven’t had a lady spend the night? How long have you been here?”   
“Five years.”   
“... You weren’t…?”   
“No. I wasn’t a virgin, Anna…”

Silence from both of them.   
“Could go back to Germany?”   
“Also maybe.”

\-----

January 4 -

Mark helped Anna take her bags from the car in the artificial lighting of the drop off zone. He was still hesitant in letting her leave even after days of discussions about where she was going. They came up with a plan, and Mark even called one of the operators in that region to meet Anna despite her protests.   
  
“I guess this is it for a while then. You know how to reach me.” Anna tried to look happy but both of them knew it wasn’t real. “I’ll call you when I meet up with Elias.”   
  
“Thank you.” He passed her the handle to her luggage. She moved it to be beside her and let it stand. She stepped forward and hugged Mark tightly. He kissed the top of her head and hugged her back.   
  
“I lov-” He started.   
“That better not be the L word. I swear to God. Please don’t make this any harder on me than it already is.”

“-ed that you came to stay with me…”   
  
Mark just hugged her tighter. Anna sniffled in his embrace, knowing damn well that that wasn’t what he was going to say. She pulled free and wiped her eyes on her collar. She has mostly healed now - still a scab on her lip, but the swelling and pain in her cheek and ribs went away. She grabbed her luggage.   
  
“Are you sure you don’t want Marius to come pick you up?”   
“I’ll be fine. We’ll talk soon.”   
  
Anna waved and took her luggage into the terminal to collect her tickets. Mark stood outside and watched her disappear down a hallway. Slowly, he collected himself and set off back to his flat.


	17. Missing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Panic arises when Anna goes missing.

**Chapter Seventeen - Missing**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Harry “Six” Pandey

Craig “Blackbeard” Jenson

Erik “Maverick” Thorn 

Olivier “Lion” Flament

Ryad Ramírez “Jackal” Al-Hassar

Elias “Blitz” Kötz

  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Unknown Location, Afghanistan

August 13 - 

Mark was sitting in Harry’s office with his arms crossed waiting for the director to return. He was clicking a pen impatiently.   
  
“I am so sorry for running late,” Harry came in and placed a stack of paperwork on his desk. “I do hope you forgive me. Now where is my recorder?”   
  
Mark produced it from under one of his elbows and handed it over.   
  
“Ah, yes. Thank you. Very well, you had a major concern regarding Annaliese Audette from Canada. Yes, yes. Please…” Harry clicked the recorder on. “Where would you like to begin?”   
  
“I haven’t heard from her since March,” Mark stated. “Five months. She would check in every couple of weeks.”   
  
“I see, so you are concerned for her wellbeing.”   
Silence.   
“Please do remember that she was doing this all herself for years prior coming to the facility here. I am worried, of course, I don’t want you to think that I’m not. However, maybe she is just somewhere without reception?”   
Silence. Mark never told him about the chips. And he made Gustave, Lena, and Grace swear to secrecy as well.   
“Mark?”   
“No. That’s not possible.”

“We can try to contact some local forces in the area where you knew her to be last and-”   
  
Mark stood up, set the pen down, and walked out. Harry wasn’t listening.   
  
\-----

August 15 -

Anna tried to keep count in her head but it was just spinning. She hasn’t eaten in at least two days, her wound reopened and it’s dangerously close to getting infected. She propped herself up on the pile of hay in the dark damp jail cell. She was somewhere in the Middle East, she could tell that by her captors. All wearing religious items and spoke in a language that kind of sounded Persian.  _ Dari? _ She tried futilely to click in her chip. It simply refused to respond.

One of her captors came by and dropped some bread on the ground. Anna resisted swallowing it whole. Once again, she meticulously picked it apart and ate the parts that weren’t destroyed by worms or mold. It was painful to chew with the bruising around her neck from the beatings but she managed. The bread wasn’t filling. She didn’t need it to be. She kept the bad bits and lured out a rat from the wall. She struck it swiftly with a rock, killing it as humanely as possible. She used a little sharp metal bit from the wall hangings to butcher the tiny animal until she could prop it up against the open flame outside of her cell grate to cook. It’s what she would call a ‘survival special’.

\-----

August 19 -

Mark burst into Harry’s office, scaring both Harry and Craig. He walked speedily up to Harry with his phone out.   
  
“Mark, is everythin-”   
“No, look.”   
  


Mark showed him his phone. On the screen was an image of Anna sitting bloodied in a jail cell.

“I don’t know where she is or how they found me, but they sent me this live feed just now.” Mark said intensely.   
  
“Oh dear...” Harry took the phone from Mark’s hand. Craig stood up and looked at the screen. Mark started pacing.   
  
“I knew there was something wrong. We have to do something.” Mark spat.   
  
“I agree. Anna is dangerous in the wrong hands.”   
“Who is Anna?”

“A close friend of Mark’s. I will get a meeting set up to discuss.” Harry offered. “Go to one of the conference rooms and get the feed up on the screen.”

Mark grabbed his phone and fled. Craig clapped Harry on the shoulder roughly and headed out as well. Harry started gathering up some papers, a recorder, maps, and other supplies for a sudden mission.

\-----

A large group of operators were present in the conference room. Mark sat up at the front with Harry while he addressed them all.

“Thank you for coming so quickly. We have an urgent case. I don’t think many of you got to meet Anna when she was here last summer but she is a friend of Team Rainbow. Now, she needs our help. Mark was sent a live feed to her imprisoned somewhere in the Middle East and we need to be able to locate her.”

“‘Friend of Team Rainbow’? What does that mean? Who is she?” Asked Zofia.

“My girlfriend,” Mark answered flatly. Harry was taken aback by the title Mark gave her.  _ I will have to discuss that with him later _ . Others also seemed curious and gossipy. James looked validated.

“She has some critical skills that could cause quite a stir in global politics should she get into the wrong hands. We have been working over the past year to keep tabs on her and to keep her out of enemy hands but they managed to grab her somewhere. Mark, the feed, please.” Harry continued.

Mark clicked his phone and the projector kicked in to a live feed of Anna sitting against the wall in her cell. It looked like she was drawing something in mid air and looked pensive. She would occasionally touch her face in deep thought. Even in dim light, the blood on her clothing was visible. Mark noticed that she kept touching her left hand, pinching it. He felt no response in his own chip.

“This is Anna. We don’t know how long she has been captive but we need to get her back to safety. We are looking for attackers to be able to locate and retrieve her.”

Craig and Erik were both quick to volunteer. Craig because he thought of his own wife and Erik because of his love of Afghanistan, hoping it would lead him there. Mark wanted to go but Harry refused due to his personal connection to the target. Discussions were in the midst of happening when the live feed started to get loud. Attention was drawn up to the screen to people entering the cell.

——-

Anna looked up to the men entering. She let her hands fall to her lap.

“Are you going to help us now?”

“My answer is the same.”

“Our boss doesn’t like that answer.”

“Too bad.”

"You don't even have ties to Rome. Why are you protecting them?"

Anna just looked up at them and sighed stubbornly. She was too weak to do much else. The man approached her and held a knife up to her throat. “I am not afraid to kill you.”

Anna couldn’t help but burst out laughing and pushed her bruised neck tighter against the blade. “I can’t write anything for you if I’m dead.”

The man flicked his hand and sliced her jaw by her left ear instead. Anna’s head slammed against the rock wall behind her with the impact of the knife. The slice immediately started bleeding. She reached up and felt the cut.  _ Small, insignificant. This man just wants to intimidate me into cooperation. _ He reached out and grabbed Anna by the throat and dragged her to the ground facedown. She grunted. He put his knee on her spine and applied pressure. “How about now? I don’t want to hurt you but I will.”

Anna didn’t reply.

He put his full weight on her and broke some ribs. Anna cried out in shock. He stood and Anna immediately started to cradle her torso.  _ I am absolutely going to stab this asshole the first chance I get. _ She glared up at him. Her wish was granted nearly instantly. He bent down to threaten her with the knife again but Anna caught him off guard. She swiftly took his knife from his hand and rammed the blade into the side of his neck. He reached up, wide eyed to try and stop the bleeding, but it didn’t work. Within a few moments, he collapsed, actively dying. The other men stormed into the cell and dragged her by her wrists out of sight of the camera. 

It was quiet. Too quiet.

The men returned with Anna two tense minutes later and threw her unconscious body on the ground, a red puddle starting to form from under her. Her chest rose unevenly on camera. They took the corpse of their colleague and left.

——-

Harry swallowed, alarmed by what he just witnessed. Several other operators were now standing and demanding to go. Based on the skill sets, it was decided that the team would be: Blackbeard, Maverick, Lion, Jackal, and Blitz. Various tracking abilities, bold personalities unafraid of high risk, and someone that knows the area with the ability to breach.

Mark looked up at all of them. “Get her back.”

——-

Mark was in the R&D lab working on his Moni jammers as the team started to load up. Elias knocked on the door and cracked it open.

“We are about to leave. Harry was looking for you… he’s in his office… We will return only when we have Miss Anna!” He closed the door quietly and walked down the hall to the garage. Mark set down his tools and held his head in his hands.  _ I was supposed to keep her safe. _ Calmly, he stood up from the workbench, put away his supplies, instruments, and his device and walked out the door.

The path to Harry’s office seemed impossibly long at this moment but Mark knew this conversation was coming as soon as the meeting ended. He held up his hand to rap on the door but paused before actually tapping. Harry called out for him to enter. Mark opened the door and walked in with a straight face. Harry was at his desk with a laptop.

"Mark, I would like to monitor Anna's condition if possible. Are you able to stream the live feed to my computer? I will also be helping the team look for hints as to where she might be." Harry looked at him with concern. Mark nodded and Harry stood to give him better access to the laptop. Within 30 seconds, it was up and connected.

"Thank you. How are you handling all of this?" Harry inquired. Mark didn't respond. "I know you wanted to go to help directly but it's better to allow others to step in in cases like these. Besides, I could use your expertise here to help pinpoint exactly where they need to go."

Harry crouched down beside Mark in his desk chair. He pointed at the screen and circled something Mark didn't notice. It was writing just outside of her cell in a language he couldn’t read. “Erik noticed this and knew she was in Afghanistan. He also could tell an approximate region based on their accents and clothing. But we need more than that. We need to take it down to a single building for them.”   
  
Mark leaned in, analyzing the environment, but he found that his eyes kept moving back to Anna’s unmoving body with her uneven breathing. It was hard to focus. Mark stood up from Harry’s chair.   
  
“I’ll keep an eye on the feed from the Lab while I work. I will call you if I see anything.” Mark said as he started walking towards the door. It was more talking than Harry could hope for. Harry nodded in agreement and got to work contacting the team on the ground. They were to land in Afghanistan soon and they needed to know that there were eyes on Anna the whole time.

He wrote:  _ Mute will continue to monitor the live feed and will update everyone if anything happens. Dokkaebi is working on tracing it back to the source but it is bouncing around. She is confident she will find it. Six is working on getting the Afghanistan National Police on board to aid in the search but it is difficult without disclosing why she is so important. He fears for her safety. Maverick, Six may need your help with your Afghani contacts. Please consider it. _

He sat back and hit send. He rubbed his temples. He may need to call one of his colleagues for some mental health care himself after this mission. He rather liked talking to Anna while she was here.

\------

Anna was in pain. That was a beating that she was expecting, and needed, but she wasn’t prepared for it to be that hard. She lifted her pounding head from the sticky floor. _Well, I’m still alive. That’s good._ She moved one of her arms to lift herself from the floor but a sharp jolt ran down her side. She touched her broken ribs tenderly. _Right… forgot about that._ She instead planted her hand on the floor and rolled over to her back. She started rubbing her face to wipe the partially dried blood off. She needed to cough. She braced and held her ribs tightly and coughed as gently as she could to prevent her injuries from getting worse. It still hurt. A lot. She thought for a minute. She shouldn’t get up right away because of the blood loss. She lifted her head enough to look out the cell bars. There was a piece of bread there but the rats had already gotten to it. She wasn’t hungry anyways.  
  
She raised her arms above her head to test her body. _Ribs, shoulder, neck. Those are the main injuries._ _Oh, and the infected wound on her calf._ Her shoulder popped painfully but felt better. _Nope, it was just dislocated. So ribs and neck._ She lowered her arms to feel her neck. _Nothing broken. Time to look for an escape._

She slowly raised herself into a sitting position to stave off dizziness and pulled out the small knife from her shoe. The beating was merely a cover to get armed. She looked it over.  _ It'll do _ . She painfully stood, braced herself against the wall, and held her head. She was wobbly, but awake. She supported herself with the wall and made her way over to the small window that they poured water in from. "This is going to suck." She muttered to herself. She jumped and grabbed the bars, planted her feet on the wall, and pulled herself up. Her ribs were screaming, but she pushed through the pain.

She quickly inspected the grate over the window and saw the screws.  _ Figures. They cut corners here. _ The small opening led into another dark area… She lowered herself gently and huddled back up on the floor. She leaned back against the wall again and looked up. She will need to recover for now, but tomorrow, she's loosening that grate.

\-----

Mark watched her as she inspected the window. He was shaking his head.

_ Bzzt. Mark? Are you watching the camera? _

Yeh.

_ She's not going to try to escape is she? _

Yeh, she is.

_ I will have to notify the team. They might need to locate her in the vicinity of the building rather than the building itself. _

Did Grace find which building it was?

_ She's narrowed it to a neighbourhood. _

Okay.

Mark set down his radio and watched as Anna drew in the air again.

\-----

Anna was trying to map out the hallways she remembered from when they dragged her in.  _ There were four corridors off this foyer looking room. This one went to the offices… this one led down here. I don't know this one and this hallway is where we came from. It snaked around and went to the main foyer. I might be able to sneak out of the offices but the foyer is a sure shot. This window might go out into that unknown hallway. Hmm… I might have to take an exploratory run to map out further. That would have to be next week when I heal more. I would be able to afford another beating then. _

A door creaked outside of her cell. She looked up and saw the only guard that she talked to. He refused to give his name and it was probably for the best. He brought her a full loaf of fresh bread.

"Thank you," she said, getting up and hobbling over to the cell door. He held the bread out to her and provided a lump of grayish meat too.

"I steal that for Quill," He said and waved it towards her. "Good food. I send message to Quill friend."

"Thank you. Are the cameras monitored? Watched?"

"No, not watched. I am sorry. I not stay. Eat! I come back."

“You need to  _ leave _ . I have people coming and they will kill you.”

“Let me die. I have to bad things.”

  
He waved and left. Anna moved away from the cell opening and started to pick apart her food. She pulled a metal pin out of the bread and noted that it looked like a lock pick. This guard is really trying to help her.  _ Or he's a double agent. _ Either way, Anna tucked it into her sock and started to eat the food that passed inspection.


	18. Capture

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna is retrieved and brought back to Greece.

**Chapter Eighteen - Capture**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette

Craig “Blackbeard” Jenson

Erik “Maverick” Thorn 

Olivier “Lion” Flament

Ryad Ramírez “Jackal” Al-Hassar

Elias “Blitz” Kötz

  
**Location:**   
Unknown Location, Afghanistan

Anna slept terribly. Her cell had the barest pile of hay for her to rest on and it was starting to break down into dust.  _ I need out of here. Exploratory run has to be today.  _ She waited for the morning guards to do their rounds but they were late. And then even later. Something was wrong.

She sat up and straightened her back out. A few of her vertebrae popped and her muscles resisted. She's definitely not up to the run but she didn't have much of a choice. She went over the mental map once again while she stretched her back, legs, and arms. Her ribs still screamed in pain when she moved the muscles on her side but she had to keep going. She went up to the window, pulled the knife out and bit down on it securely. She jumped up, grabbed the bars on the window and found a footing in the rough stone walls. She let go with one hand and started to twist on the screw on the window grate with the knife. It loosened.

_ Looks like the grate swings inwards. That's perfect.  _ Anna kept untwisting the screw until it fell. She listened to a moment of silence before it clanged to the ground. Then she waited for footsteps but none sounded.  _ Something is definitely wrong _ . She started on the second screw and worked on it until it too fell to the ground. The grate swung open. She quickly changed her grip and got under it instead. She looked down to find the distance to the ground, and also both directions of the hallway.

She kept sliding herself through the small opening until she was free. She landed roughly and pain shot through her chest and throat. She opened her mouth but quickly closed it and scrunched up her face silently and held her ribs. She took shallow breaths until the pain subsided a little. She headed left cautiously.

Down the hall, there were piles of wood to burn, food stores ( _ that explains the rats _ ), and crates of who knows what. As she approached the end of the hallway, she heard shouting. She retreated a little and dug through the pile of sticks to find a suitable club for protection. She crept forward to listen in but they weren't talking in English. Anna waited patiently for a moment to dash out.

The moment came when the voices started to move away from her. She peeked the corner and saw no one. Some bangs sounded from around the corner.  _ Were those gunshots? _ She ran quietly and ducked behind cover along the hall she just turned down. There were voices again so she paused. They sounded panicked.

Anna peeked from her hiding spot and saw the hallway clear. She ran to the next intersection and stopped again, listening. Someone came up from behind her and grabbed her. She stepped, twisted out of their grasp, saw that it was one of her captors and smashed them in the face with her club. He cried out and fell to the ground holding his bloody eye. Her ribs protested every moment of action.

Anna heard more people coming towards her from two directions. She held the bat up and a few more of her captors came around the corner with knives and pistols, she stepped forward to have more space to defend herself. A yell sounded from her right and she turned to look. In an instant, she was blinded by bright light. She heard gun shots so she retreated behind the only cover she knew... the wall she just stepped out from. She crouched down and tried to blink away the stars. She heard yelling, more gun shots, and heavy footsteps.

She stood, still unable to see, and held her club up. She was in the dim cell for so long, the brightness really burned her retinas. There was a click of metal from nearly in front of her and she lashed out, hitting the club about head height in hopes of striking her attacker down. Her ribs were crying out for her to stop but she backed up when she heard the stick strike metal. She tried to blink and shake the stars away.

"Oh ho! That was a good hit, Anna! Right at my face! If I didn't have my shield up, you would have rung my helmet!"

"Elias?" Anna kept squinting and blinking.

"I didn't mean to flash you, I'm sorry about that. You just happened to turn to face me with the others. C'mon. You're safe now!" A gentle hand reached out and touched hers. Anna flinched but decided to go with it. She heard another man radio out that they have Anna and to meet back at the vehicle. "Oh, you haven't met Maverick, have you? We'll introduce everyone once we are on the way back."

Anna nodded, just starting to see clearly again.

Elias continued, "let's move out. I've got you!" He gently but firmly grabbed her arm and was leading her with his shield raised. Erik was keeping behind them to cover their backs. She was led to the main foyer. She looked up to the second floor and saw someone in camouflage covering the upstairs entrances, there was another person covering the side hall in yellow?  _ Why yellow? _ She couldn't make out much more than that.  _ That's just four… I thought there were five per team? _

Elias got her to the front door but set her down on the ground. Her ribs ached but she kept quiet. "Stay here, don't move." He and Erik went outside and scanned for any enemies that wanted to surprise them. Anna looked back at the other two and they didn't move at all _. _ It was several minutes later when an armoured vehicle skidded up to the building and Anna heard their radios sound with an ‘all clear’. The two men inside walked backwards towards her and one tapped her on the shoulder.

“I need you to follow me,” Anna stood up from her crouch and went with the bearded man. They made their way to the vehicle and climbed inside. The two operators outside followed suit now that they had cover. The vehicle drove off the moment they were all inside.   
  
Anna saw the kind guard beside the building injured, but alive. She exhaled, happy to see that he made it. Or hopes that he makes it. It’s hard to tell from this distance. She turned to Elias who was struggling to set his shield in a way that it doesn’t bump anyone. The rest seemed to just stare out the windows watching for anything suspicious, hands on their weapons.   
  
“Anna, let’s patch you up,” Elias opened one of his velcroed pockets for a small medical kit.   
  
“Let’s get somewhere safe first,” Anna turned him down.   
  
“There’s not a lot of safe areas around here,” The man she knew as Maverick stated. “This is an area ruled by the insurgents still. We’re not welcome here.”   
  
“You heard him, Ryad, let’s get out of here.” The Frenchman called forward. The vehicle sped up. 

Ten minutes later, Erik said aloud “we’re approaching the edge of the city, but it’s going to be closed.” He pointed out the window to some insurgent trucks by the gate. “Someone tipped them off. We need to turn around.”   
  
“I know somewhere,” Anna said, surprising all of them. “It’s not a good place but he owes me a favour.” The operators shared concerned glances. “Believe me, he won’t do us wrong. I have too much over him.”   
  
Ryad turned the vehicle and headed back into the urban area. Anna directed him to a shoddy looking inn towards a quiet part of town. The team looked even more uncomfortable now. Erik got out with her and went up to the back door. He pounded his fist while the others kept an eye out in the neighbourhood. A young man answered with a rifle. Anna looked up to him.   
  
“Akram. اکنون” Anna demanded. The man didn’t acknowledge what she said. Erik repeated the demand gruffly and the man closed the door on them. Moments later, the person she was looking for, Akram, opened the door and looked at her panicked, he turned to Erik, saw his rifle and panicked even more. “I’ve come to get my favour.”   
  
“Now is not good.”   
“No time is good, Akram. We will be in and out.”   
“What do you need?”   
“Clothes, paper and a pen.”   
“No more?”   
“No more. No less.”   
  
The man’s face twitched with anxiety but opened the door. Erik radioed to the others. Akram led them upstairs and turned to face them. He was middle aged, starting to grey, and his clothes were stained. “These are the spare clothes from the men here. Take what you need. I will get you some paper.” He left quickly and was heard shuffling some stationary and opening wooden drawers in the next room.

  
“What are we looking for?” Erik asked quietly.   
  
“Disguises.” Anna started grabbing some basic linen kaftans of varying colours. She also grabbed some scarves and hats. “I can get us through the border if I can make myself look like a gift to neighbouring insurgent groups.”   
  
“‘Gift’?” Erik helped dig through the pile.   
  
“I’m useful to people seeking power,” She started wrapping all the clothes into one kaftan to carry it all. “I am a valuable commodity. It would be a welcomed thing and they should let us through with no questions as long as you all look and act the part.”   
  
Akram returned with some writing instruments. He set it down on the table and stood back. Anna handed the pen to Erik. “I need you to word a letter and write it in Dari. I will copy it. Have it say ‘a gift to our brothers’. Short and sweet.”   
  
Akram shook. “I want no part in this.”   
  
“You won’t. This is all that we need from you.” Erik penned it out and Anna clarified some of the words. She then penned her own version in the handwriting of an insurgent official, signing it in his name. She rolled her shoulder in pain. Erik stared at her work intensely, curiously. He picked up the clothing from the floor and held it under his arm. Anna folded the letter carefully and opened it again. She made a few small marks in ink in the margins, smudged a few letters, and then folded it again. She left the blank paper on the table and took both letters with her. “That is all Akram. No more favours unless you come to me again. No one hears about this or else they will hear about your debts. Got it?”   
  
“Yes, I understand.”   
“Stay safe, Akram. Allah bless you.”   
“Stay safe. May we never cross paths again.”

Anna and Erik left swiftly and climbed back into the vehicle. Anna directed Ryad to another secluded spot for them to disguise themselves and to tell them her plan.

\-----

Ryad pulled up to the border with a cap, kaftan, and a scarf covering the lower half of his face. Erik sat in the front, mostly covered with fabric, and dusted with dirt. Anna sat in the back between a somewhat exposed Craig, a covered Elias and Olivier. She was bound at the wrists and had a fabric bag over her head. The team had their weapons out, and their vests on under the local clothing. Their expressions were stoic, hardened.  _ Perfect. _   
  
Ryad stopped at the crossing with the insurgent trucks. He handed over the letter wordlessly. The armed man standing outside read the letter and demanded they open the back. Erik motioned to Craig and he popped the vehicle door open. He got out, pulled Anna with him and threw her to the ground. She gasped in pain from her ribs.  _ Adds to the realism but damn, that actually hurt. _ The Afghan man pulled the sack from her head and she looked up to him, blinded by the sun above. His expression changed and he smiled. He said something to Craig and laughed. Craig laughed with him. Anna had no idea if he knew what he was laughing about or not. The armed man kicked her in the face and blood ran from her lips. She spat it out and swore at him. Craig slammed her into the ground again and threw the sack back on to hide her face. The blood from her mouth started to stain the linen. Erik was talking to the man out his window as if this was all good and normal. Olivier and Elias just looked out, gripping their rifles uncomfortably. Craig half dragged her back to the vehicle and tossed her in. 

  
The border guard handed the letter back to Ryad and sent them on their way. A minute later when they were sure they weren’t getting followed. Craig took the sack from her head and started untying her wrists.   
  
“Anna, your face.” Elias looked worried. She had blood running down her chin from her lips.   
  
“It went perfectly.” She grabbed the sack with her now free hands and wiped her face. The blood smeared across her jaw and cheek. She wiped again and got most of it this time. A small trickle started to fall from her lower lip and she pinched it.   
  
“Did I hurt you? It sounded like it hurt.” Craig looked at her, taking the scarf from his head.   
  
“Yes, but that was great. I wasn’t expecting it! It was  _ real _ . That’s all I could ask for when acting. Let’s get to the helicopter and get the hell out of here.” Anna smiled, still pinching her lip.


	19. Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna is reunited.

**Chapter Nineteen - Return**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Harry “Six” Pandey

Craig “Blackbeard” Jenson

Erik “Maverick” Thorn 

Olivier “Lion” Flament

Ryad Ramírez “Jackal” Al-Hassar

Elias “Blitz” Kötz

Håvard “Ace” Haugland

Gustave “Doc” Kateb

  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

The US helicopter touched down at the facility in Greece and its blades slowed. Mark, Harry, Gustave, and Håvard were waiting for them just inside the building. Anna was helped down from the craft by Craig and was escorted off the landing pad to the building. They were followed by Elias, Erik, Ryad, and Olivier. The helicopter took off again once they were all inside.

Gustave and Håvard rushed towards them to check for injuries. Gustave went to Anna first. “I was watching the video when they broke your ribs, I will need to take x-rays for a better idea of the damage. Please come with me to the medical bay. Do you need assistance getting there? What other injuries do you have?”

“No,” Anna replied. “I can walk. And x-rays will be fine only if you really need them. Face, bruising, some cuts, one infected.” The team went separate ways. Harry and the operators went to the lockers at the arena to have a debrief and to put their equipment away. Mark, Gustave, and Anna went to the medical bay for her to get treatment.   
  
It was a short walk from the helipad. Anna assumed it was for this very reason - urgent cases. She was limping slightly but she tried to hide it. Gustave directed her to a chair and asked her to sit. She did so, and then held her ribs. Gustave went off to ready the x-ray machine.   
  
“I heard you attacked Elias,” Mark broke the silence.   
  
“I heard you called me your  _ girlfriend… _ ”   
Silence.

“Care to explain?”   
“I needed them to understand the urgency.”   
“So you lied to them?”   
“It would only be a lie if you decide for it to be one.”

“I... Mark… You know I’m not in a position to-”   
  
Gustave returned with a lead vest draped over his arm. Anna stood carefully and walked over to him. Mark waited outside. A few minutes later, Anna came back out holding her torso. She looked pale and weak. Mark helped her up onto one of the beds so she could lay down.   
  
“We’ll talk later,” He said softly. He started stroking her hair when Håvard and Olivier walked in. Olivier was in a t-shirt now and was bleeding from his upper arm. Håvard sat him down on one of the beds across from Anna and then went to find Gustave.   
  
“How are you doing, mademoiselle?” Olivier called over to her.   
  
“Just dandy, merci. Et toi?” She answered.

“Bien,” he laughed. “Parlez-vous français? Je ne m'attendais pas à ça!”

“Not that much, but some.”   
“Ah, English it is, then.”

Mark kept stroking her hair, merely listening in.   
  
“I also didn’t expect Mark to have a girlfriend… or at least to admit to it.” Olivier roared again.   
  
“Honestly, neither did I,” Anna joked back. Olivier grinned.

Gustave came out and greeted his teammate. “Bonsoir, Olivier. Attendez un peu! Anna, you have a few broken ribs, and some older wounds too. They shouldn’t need surgery but it’s going to be a long healing process. I will get some antibiotics for the infected wound on your leg and some pain meds to make you more comfortable. Will you be staying this time?”   
  
“I don’t know. I’ll have to speak with Harry.” Anna replied. Gustave nodded and prepared a dish of warm water, a clean cloth, and gave it to Anna to clean up a bit.

“No showers for a day or two until we determine more about your head injuries. I want you rested. I’ll come back once you clean up a little.” Gustave walked over to Olivier and started chattering in French. He was inspecting the bullet graze.

Anna propped herself up and dipped the cloth into the water and started wiping off her face. Mark held his hand out to take the cloth but Anna gripped it tighter and shook her head. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He turned the camera on and flipped it to the front facing camera before handing it to her.   
  
It was the first time she saw herself. Her face was puffy, there was bruising all along her jaw where the knife cut her and around her one eye. Her lips and nose were crusted with blood. She lowered the cloth and just stared at her reflection for a moment. She looked down, ashamed, but then kept cleaning up her face. She got most of the blood off, and handed the phone back to Mark. She slid down in the bed. Mark went and spoke to Gustave. He nodded and pointed to a cabinet. Mark walked over to where Gustave motioned and took some clean clothes out to give to Anna. He also grabbed a blanket while he was in there and brought it all back to her bed.   
  
“You can change in the shower over there. Take the cloth with you and you can clean up a little more that way.” He said, handing her the loose pants and gown. She nodded and sat up, aching. It apparently showed in her face because he helped her off the bed. Anna grabbed the clothes and the dish and went into the shower room. Mark crossed his arms and leaned against the foot of the bed. He looked up and noticed Håvard and Olivier watching him. He ignored it and waited for Anna to return.   
  
She came back a few minutes later and Gustave was sewing up Olivier’s arm. Mark looked over to her and noticed a new scar on her upper arm. He grabbed her and ran his finger along it. Anna grabbed her arm and twisted it a little for a better view.   
  
“Oh, that was a knife attack… in France actually. About… three months ago? It healed up pretty nicely. I was pretty proud of those one handed sutures.” Anna smiled and put her dirtied clothes on the bed. She looked over to Gustave and Olivier and they both looked concerned. Anna put her hands up defensively. “It’s not a reflection of France. It happens everywhere.”   
  
“Where in France were you attacked?” Gustave stood upright, addressing her. Olivier didn’t mind the pause in treatment - he wanted to know too.   
  
“A little north of Marseille.” Anna started to fold her clothes. “I’m fine, it doesn’t matter anyways. It was a while ago. Help Olivier. You’ve only stitched him half up.”   
  
Mark drew the curtains closed around her bed and crossed his arms. He whispered to her, “you need to tell me when you’re attacked. I won’t be able to help you if you don’t.”   
  
“I didn’t need help. I’m fine. You said yourself… even if you defend yourself perfectly against a knife, you’re still going to get cut somewhere. I handled it fine.” Anna climbed back up onto the bed. Mark stepped around to stand in front of her. He cupped her swollen face and kissed her quietly. She put her hand on top of his and kissed him back. It broke naturally. “I’m fine. I promise.” Mark still held her face and put his forehead against hers momentarily. He motioned for her to lay down. Anna scooted up and stretched her legs out. They were stiff from sitting so much but Mark grabbed the blanket and laid it over her. He pet her head again and told her that he would be back and to not move from the bed.   
  
Mark stepped out from behind the curtain and started to walk out of the room. Håvard ran to catch up with him.   
  
“Is Anna okay?” Håvard asked.   
  
“Anna’s tough,” Mark replied and kept walking. Håvard stopped and returned to the medical bay to talk to Gustave. Mark went to the barracks to grab the deck of cards and a book.   
  
“How is Anna?” Craig stopped him. Erik popped his head out of the bathroom with a toothbrush sticking out of his mouth.   
  
“Anna’s tough,” Mark repeated. “Thank you for bringing her back safely.”   
  
“Any time,” Craig stepped aside and shared a look with Erik. "Please apologize to her again for me having to be so rough with her."

"She understands." Mark grabbed some of his stuff and headed back to the medical bay. He heard Anna laughing from behind the curtain and saw feet there too. He walked over and joined them. Anna was holding her ribs and James apologized to her for causing her pain but she waved him off.   
  
“Laughter is the cure for a lot of things… just not broken ribs. Don’t apologize.” Anna looked at Mark as he entered. He set the things down on the nearby chair and muttered something about time wasters. Anna nodded and expressed her appreciation.

"Tried to hide your lady from me, eh? I knew you were hiding something. Mike didn't believe me but I gotcha now. Hah!" James crossed his arms. Mark didn't look impressed.

"You told me not to move from the bed," Anna playfully put her hands up. "He just came in and started bragging."

"Oh c'mon. Not bragging. It was gloating." James pointed at her.

"Either way, you should go. James. I need to talk to Anna about something." Mark put his hands in his pockets.

"If he pulls out a ring, I'm going to die," James joked as he walked out. "See yah, love birds!"

Mark shook his head in frustration. He held his chip in but Anna didn't react at all. He shook his head again.

"What?" She asked.

"The chips aren't working," He stated. "I need to talk to Lena and Grace. They're not here, though. We need to get them back up and active... I saw you trying to use it in the cell."

"I'm glad you had eyes on me. I figured the chips weren't connecting because you weren't answering. I was worried the feed would fail though."

"The feed scared the hell out of me. Is this what you go through?"

"This is what I've been through. This wasn't even that bad. Just beatings. No torture this time."

Mark looked stunned. She said it so matter-of-factly. Like it's an annoying task at work rather than her life. He just breathed and stepped beside her and gave her a hug. She hugged him back.

They heard steps outside of the curtain and looked up waiting for someone to emerge. She started to pull away but Mark didn't let go of her like she expected. She just rested her head on his chest instead. The person just walked by.

"I thought you said you weren't going to hug me in front of others?"

"After I saw the video, I told myself that I wouldn't hide in front of my team anymore. Not this anyway." Mark slowly let go. “You showed a lot of courage.”

“Thanks,” Anna laid back. She scrunched up her face in pain. Mark gently touched her thigh and looked helpless. Anna reassured him. “I can and  _ will _ heal from this.”

“I know.”

“I wish you could sleep up here with me.”

“I know.”

Gustave cleared his throat outside of the curtain before opening it. Olivier was gone now. Gustave had a cart of medical supplies. A saline bag for her dehydration with anti-inflammatory and pain meds to inject into the IV port, a needle with local anesthetic to treat her leg, and a topical ointment for the wound. He also brought bandages, fresh water to clean the wound, and antibiotic pills for the infection.

“This is some high class treatment. I usually do salt soaks, bandages, and antibiotics for something like this.”

“No wonder you have so much scar tissue. I will make sure this will heal well.”

“I appreciate it, Gustave. The pain meds especially.”

Gustave nodded, sanitized the inside of her elbow, and inserted the IV. He taped it securely in place. He quickly administered the injections into her port so her body can start to relax. He respectfully rolled up the loose pants to her knee and numbed the injured area of her calf. He cleaned it up, decided to add a couple of sutures after all, added the ointment, and bandaged it. He left the pills on the side table with instructions. He ordered her to take it twice a day with food starting now. He smiled while rolling her pant leg back down and asked her if she needed anything else.

“No, thank you.” Anna smiled. Gustave took the cart and closed the curtain after him. She laid back on the bed and looked up at the ceiling.

“What am I getting you from the kitchen?”

“I’m not that hungry so something small. I don’t even know what time it is.”

“I want you to pick something you will eat a lot of.”

“Carbs.”

“I’ll be back then.”


	20. Offer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With extensive injuries, Anna gets an offer from Zero.

**Chapter Twenty - Offer**

**Cast:**

Annaliese Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Harry “Six” Pandey

Erik “Maverick” Thorn 

Gustave “Doc” Kateb

Sam “Zero” Fisher

  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Mark stayed as late as Gustave would let him before being sent off to let his patient rest.

He slept pretty restlessly, wanting to check in on Anna. Instead, he drafted messages to Lena and Grace about the failed chips. He will need to talk to Gustave about getting hers removed and testing to see if his was still working. Lena agreed nearly immediately. She included that she had some improvements she wanted to make. Grace replied later. She had the code available and will tweak some things. She was due to be back at the facility in 10 days so it won’t be a long wait. Mark asked Lena when she is due back and didn’t get a reply before he fell back asleep.

\-----

He woke up to Lena’s reply of ‘six days’.  _ Good. We can get this done quickly. _ He got up and did his morning routine. He quickly got dressed and headed off to the medical bay. Anna was already awake and was reading in her bed. The curtain was open. She was looking a little better to his relief.   
  
“How yeh feelin’?” He greeted her. She looked up and closed the book with a smile.   
  
“I’m feeling alright. Still tender from the broken bones but the infection is less hot and the swelling has dropped significantly.”   
“What do you want for breakfast?”

“I was hoping to go down with you, actually. But Gustave won’t let me leave.”

“I wouldn’t either.”

Anna sighed.   
“What do you want to eat?”

She shrugged. “Whatever they have. Eggs, toast, potatoes, anything. You know how much I can eat.”   
  
Mark nodded and headed off to grab them take-away containers. He was stopped by no fewer than five people asking about Anna’s condition, and hoping to meet her.  _ This is tiring _ . He turned them all down and informed them that she was in good care, that he was due back and should go. The disappointed operators went back to their meals and started up on the theories.

Erik caught up to Mark in the hallways. “Anna is a good woman. She’s smart. Clever. Got us through an insurgent border crossing back there.”   
  
“Sounds like her,” Mark noted to ask her about the escape over food.

“How do you know her?”

“We knew each other as teenagers.”

“Your teenage years were not the norm, Mark. How do you know her?”   
“Her teenage years were like mine.”   
“She wrote a letter in the exact handwriting of someone I’ve been keeping tabs on… And she was laughing after her attack.”   
“Sounds like her. I should be going. Food is getting cold.”   
  
Mark started to walk away but Erik stopped him a second time.   
  
“Do you trust her? Completely trust her?”   
“Yes.”

Silence.

“You should talk to her. Let her tell you some stories of what she’s been through, Erik.”

The two intelligence officers stared at each other for a moment, studying the other’s face. Erik put his hands up in resignation and Mark started walking back to the medical bay with the food.

Anna was sitting up on her bed again and talking to Gustave about the attack in France. He was taking notes and asking her for more information. She was giving descriptions and had a map pulled up on Gustave’s phone. Mark walked in and set the food down in front of her and opened the containers. He passed her some utensils.   
  
“Did they have any others with them?”   
“There were just two of them. I’m not sure if they were part of any group, Gustave. I’ve had international bounties out on me before… they could have just been looking for a paycheque.”

“Any insignia?”   
“They were in normal street clothes with logos I didn’t recognize. Some tattoos on their necks, star bursts I think?.” Anna took a mouthful of her breakfast after a quick inspection.   
  
“I’ll pass this on to French police. They might recognise these descriptions... They can add them to their files anyway. Perhaps someone reported the incident but they had nothing to go on before now. I’m not sure. Thank you for your time. ...Don’t forget your pill.”   
  
Anna held a finger up as a thank you because her mouth was full. She quickly snatched the bottle of antibiotics, swallowed her food, and then downed one with the water. Gustave watched, then headed out to allow them to eat.   
  
“Thanks for the food. I didn’t know how hungry I was until I took a bite.”

“No problem.”   
“Gustave said that he’s had to turn a handful of people away that wanted to meet me.”   
“As did I. They’re all curious about you.”   
“I think they’re all curious about this mysterious ‘girlfriend’ of the silent intelligence officer.”   
“Did you make a decision on that?”

“What do you mean?”   
“Is calling you my girlfriend a lie?”   
  


“I-” Anna paused. She took another mouthful of food and pushed the container away. She chewed slowly before swallowing. Her eyes scanned the blanket in thought. “I don’t know... I want to say yes, but that makes things complicated. Very complicated. You  _ will _ be used against me and I don’t know if I can handle that.”   
  
“A lot of people on this team deal with the same thing. We actively try to counter an  _ international terrorist organization _ through monitoring, tracking, global reporting, and other sources. They’re dangerous. Unpredictable. We all have families, Anna. We have siblings, parents, some of the members on the team have spouses, kids. We do this for the greater good.” Mark looked at her intensely.

“I’m not part of a team, though. It’s just...  _ me _ . I don’t have extensive training, I don’t have global resources, I don’t have weapons or even a home. I have to defend myself from being attacked and that means removing vulnerabilities. Openings. This way, I only have to worry about myself and I can make decisions based on my boundaries, capabilities. You are working to protect others from attack. It’s different. Those attacks are not personal. My attacks are not about the ‘greater good.’”

“Doesn’t mean that our attacks won’t or can’t be personal in the future. This is a risk for all of us.”

“It’s… It…” Anna looked down and sighed. She put her head in her hands. Mark reached out and put his hand comfortingly on her knee. Anna removed her hands and put hers on his. She shook her head and took another bite of food. They sat in silence for a while before Anna spoke. “I’m not comfortable with it… yet.”

Mark nodded and took his hand back to keep eating.

“I’m sorry,” Anna muttered, sounding genuinely saddened.

“Don’t be. You told me that you  _ wanted _ to say ‘yes’ to dating, and said you weren’t comfortable  _ yet _ , and your hesitation lies in you  _ caring _ about me. That tells me a lot.” Mark looked up to her. She looked back with furrowed eyebrows.   
  
“...I really do want to say yes.”   
“Then say yes.”   
Silence from both of them while they kept eating.

\-----

After food, Anna told Mark about the escape from Afghanistan. He listened while she told him about how she was treated, the escape from the cell, hitting Elias’ shield after getting blinded by the flash, the vehicle, the disguises, the border to the city, and the flight back.   
  
“That’s why Craig wanted to apologize… I understand now.”   
“He brought it up to me like… twice. No. Three times. Once in the vehicle on the ground, and twice in the air. I kept telling him that it was actually a good thing but I think he still felt bad.”   
  
“That’s Craig definitely. How are you, little bird?” Sam walked in, half hearing what she was talking about.

“Zero... Hi. I’m alright. Healing up.”

Sam tossed her an apple. “‘An apple a day keeps the doctor away.’ Thought you knew that.”

  
“Most things will if you throw them hard enough.” Anna replied jokingly, catching it. Gustave popped his head out from around the corner and looked at her before retreating. She laughed and held her ribs. “Ow.”

“Harry showed me that footage of yours. Looked rough.”   
“It was. But I needed them to get close to me so I could take their knife. I wasn’t expecting to be left unconscious, though. They went harder than normal probably because I… you know… stabbed one of them.”   
“You killed him.”

  
“Well… yes.” She looked down shamefully. “He was one of their leaders, I think. He did most of my injuries, interrogations, and tried to convince me to cooperate, violently or otherwise. He was increasing his intensity so I had to speed up my escape. I had to do something.”

“You shouldn’t antagonize them like that.” Sam said sternly.

“They like to feel in control,” Anna looked up at him patiently. “I’m small so they already feel like I’m not a threat. I can’t out muscle them. I have to out  _ strategize _ them. And I know where my physical limitations are.”

“Being injured like this makes you vulnerable for subsequent attacks.”   
“I know that. I’ve literally been kidnapped from kidnappers. These people are relentless. As I’ve told Mark, I endure. I persevere.”

“I’m going to talk to Harry about getting you a spot here at the facility. We ca-”   
“Absolutely not! I will not allow the facility and your operators to become jeopardized on my behalf.”

“I wasn’t asking.”   
“I will escape here if I need to to keep you all off the radar.”

“I’ll take you on for training then. I offered last time and you turned me down, but I think now is the time to get you more ready for these situations.”

“I’ve had self-defense training.”   
“Self-defense is different from tactical training. It’s only a small part of what we do here to defend ourselves. I think you would benefit from the next step.”   
  
Anna looked at him silently. Mark stood up from the chair and went beside Sam. “I agree, actually.”   
  
“I want to know how you move, how you think, how you escape. And then we figure out how to take that to the next level. I want you to do more physical training to build up muscle mass and cardio to keep you going.” Sam crossed his arms.   
  
“I’ve done all this before. It doesn’t help when I’m in a tiny cell for months getting starved to emaciation.”

“Then we get you out before that point and bring you back here to recover.”   
“That sounds like a lot of resources from Rainbow. You have bigger fish to worry about.”   
“Actually, Harry disagrees. You’re dangerous if loose in the world and we want to keep tabs on you. We’re happy you’re on our side, but keeping you out of enemy hands is important. It prevents political unrest across borders, and takes a tool away from terrorists.”

“So now I’m a ‘tool’ in the eyes of Team Rainbow. Great.”   
“We don’t want to use your skills, little bird. We just don’t want others to either.”

Anna looked between the two of them and sighed. “I’ll need clearance from Gustave.”


	21. Advanced (Content Warning)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna and Zero get more acquainted and their talks concern the trainer.

**Chapter Twenty-One - Advanced**

**Content Warning:**

_ This chapter contains discussions of suicide and self harm. These topics are not acted upon, it is just a conversation about the past. _

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Grace “Dokkaebi” Nam

Harry “Six” Pandey

Sam “Zero” Fisher

  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

It’s been a month of healing at the facility in Greece.

Anna has had the opportunity to meet most of the operators now though a few still remained elusive to her. She was told that it’s apparently quite normal for these few. She was wrapped a brace along her rib cage under her sports bra in her staff quarters. Sam wanted to see her at the arena today for the first day of their training. Her injuries all healed but her ribs were still tender. Gustave said it shouldn’t be too much longer before they’re healed completely as well.

Some of the female operators took her out for clothing to wear around, work out in, and for sleeping. They also took her to a few sport and military speciality stores for supportive braces like the one she was applying now, gloves, masks, holsters, harnesses, PPE, and other things. She tossed her hands up and let them have their day with shopping. They had quite a list of things to get for her and it seemed that Anna was just along to test the fit.

She hasn’t been able to build the muscle mass Sam was expecting yet but Gustave has been strict about her healing schedule. She’s a little concerned about that and yet, she knew that this was going to be a long process so she tried to not let it bother her. She grabbed one of the compression long sleeved shirts and threw it on top of the brace. She tossed a loose tee on over that. She already had some leggings on for crouching, climbing, and flexibility, and new boots for footing. She tossed the harnesses, holsters, and such into a duffle bag and brought it with her. She didn’t know what Sam had planned.   
  
She tossed the duffel over her shoulder and headed down to the kitchen area. She set the bag down at a table and grabbed breakfast. It was early. 0630. There were a few people up already but they were used to her being around though so beyond some greetings, no one said much. She sat with her bag and started to eat. She trusted the food here now but still found herself serving carefully.   
  
A few mouthfuls in, Grace came and sat with her. “You have training today.” She smiled cheekily.   
  
“I do, yes.”   
“Are you ready? Sam is stern.”   
“I would imagine so. I’m nervous, of course. My ribs are still not 100% so I don’t want to take too many hits. Gustave was hesitant in letting me go this early.”   
“You’ll be okay! Sam just wants to see what you can do when you’re in this condition. He wants to come up with a plan. He’s a hardball but he’s got a lot of experience.”

“I’ll be fine. I always am.” Anna smiled and got to talking about other things.   
  
\-----

Anna walked out to the field towards the structure she saw Mark train at last year. She swallowed, popped her shatterproof glasses on, and pulled her mask up from her neck to cover her nose, mouth, and cheeks. She hasn’t seen Sam yet so she set her duffel down on a bench and went to explore the building. It was complex inside with each room being a little different. Some had counters and boxes, others had what looked like large metal racks. Another was just a bathroom.  _ I guess these are all types of places they would need to be able to navigate. I wonder how they train for outdoor situations like the caves? _ She touched some of the white powder on the wall and rubbed her fingers together.  _ I think it’s talc. _ She dusted it off on her leggings.   
  
There were some walls blown out, scorch marks along the ground, and things overturned.  _ This looks like a battle went on here... I guess that’s the point. No blood though so that's good. _ She sighed and stepped over some broken glass on the floor. There was some barbed wire at the top of the stairs between the door ways that she jumped over as well. She looked out one of the windows and heard someone bump the broken glass she passed. Her skin prickled. She dodged and a powder bullet hit the wall where she was. She scrambled to get her footing and dove behind a crate.  _ I’m not armed. _ She looked around for resources and heard the barbed wire rattle. She stealthily slid along the wall until she could enter another room.

There was more opportunity to hide in here and hide she did.

Sam entered the room quietly and with his rifle up. "Little bird, where are you?" He scanned the room and saw no movement, nothing out of place, no sound. He turned his attention to the next room and kept clearing out the spaces.

Anna waited until his footsteps were far enough away before climbing out of the tiny empty cupboard and returned the way she came. She was on the second floor so she went back to the barbed wire at the top of the stairs and swung around the corner to the steps. One creaked.  _ Shit. _ She climbed down the rest of them as fast as possible and looked for somewhere to hide. Nowhere good here but one of the windows was open. She ran to it, kicking a can towards the nearby room to make noise, climbed through the window, and crouched down under the sill.

She listened and heard Sam kick something heavy out of his way in the room she just exited. He slid a piece of furniture and followed the aluminum can noise. Anna sprinted to her duffel bag and stood beside it and caught her breath. Sam saw her from the kitchen window and lowered his weapon. He disappeared and exited out the front door.

"Good morning," He said. "I saw you go inside and I thought it was a perfect time to begin."

"Apparently."

"I have to give it to you though, you are quiet. Reminds me of Caveira! That's good. How's your ribs? I promised Doc that I would go easy on you."

"They’re fine. I don't imagine ‘going easy’ is in your vocabulary."

"Today is seeing where you are. I'm not going to arm you but if you can get my weapon, you're allowed to use it."

Anna nodded.

"I will try to track you down, capture you, tie you up or whatever, and bring you back to the opposite side of the arena. I will consider getting you to the benches over there a win for me.” He pointed at the opposite entrance to the field. “This side is the safe area. Your goal is to evade me and come back here. As soon as you touch the benches here, you’re considered ‘clear’.”

“Okay,” Anna crossed her arms. “Did I need anything else besides what I’m wearing?”

“I don’t think so.”   
“Okay, let’s start.”   
  


Sam raised his eyebrows at her lack of hesitation. “I’ll try not to aim for your ribs if I shoot you... Oh! And if I shoot you, you’re considered dead if it hits your chest or head. Limbs are where you are downed usually but we’ll consider it dead for now.”

“People need me alive so I don’t really get shot at. ‘Dead’ would be a loss for you in terms of my situation.” Anna countered.   
  


Sam stroked his beard. “True, but let's discuss that later. Did you need any time to prepare?”   
  
“I don’t get time to prepare, Zero.” Anna shrugged and started walking towards the building.

\-----

An hour later, Sam and Anna were sitting on the bench and packing up. They were both in pain from the struggling inside the arena. It was mostly hand to hand combat, evasion, and hiding. They both won some rounds. Sam expressed how counter-intuitive it was to not reach for his gun to shoot her and how different it is from the other training that they focus on here. She nodded and said the same about some of her attackers. They draw a gun and are scolded by the people around them.   
  
“What if they actually shoot you?”   
“I don’t know. I think a lot about dying and how it’ll happen for me. Shooting would be quick I would hope.”   
  


Sam looked over to her with a concerned expression.   
  
“How old are you?”   
“Twenty-eight.”   
“Twenty-eight and you want to die?”   
“I don’t  _ want  _ to die. Don’t misunderstand me. I just know it’ll happen some day. And when it does, it won’t be my problem anymore.”

Sam massaged one of his palms. “What about Mark?”   
  
“What  _ about _ Mark?”

“You don’t think about how it would affect him?”   
“For now I do, sure. But... if I’m dead, I won’t be thinking about much really. It sounds peaceful.”

Sam looked at her as she stood. She picked her duffel bag up and slung it cross-body. “Did you need anything else from me, Zero?”

“I don’t like using names, and ‘little bird’ isn’t appropriate when training. What kind of code name do you go by?”   
“I don’t have one…”   
“I’ll talk with some others and we’ll figure something out for you.”   
“I’ve been called Quill by people trying to capture me. It could be fitting.”   
“Would you be comfortable with that?”   
“Sure, I guess. Is there anything else?”

“No, that’s all. I’ll come up with a plan of action and I’ll get in touch with you.”   
“Perfect. I hope you have a good rest of your day.”   
  
Anna walked off back to the main building deep in thought. Sam followed soon after and went to talk to Harry about how it went.

\-----

Anna sat in her room with the book Mark left for her. She was rereading it again but she didn’t mind. She loved paper books but they weigh her down on the run so she’ll enjoy them when she can.

There was a knock at the door. She wasn’t expecting anyone so she went over and looked through the peephole. It was Harry. Anna undid the locks and invited him in.

“How did your training with Sam go?”   
“Well. I think it was more training for both of us. I think he’s used to the shoot-first-ask-questions-later method but he couldn’t really do that with me.”   
“I see. He mentioned that it was frustrating. He’s had experience with target retrieval but those people are usually closer to compliant than combative. Heh.”

Harry pulled out her desk chair and sat down. Anna sat on the bed facing him.

“He did mention some concerning views with you though. About death. I don’t know if you wanted to talk about them.”   
  


Anna smiled and looked to the side, before returning her gaze to Harry.

“I’m not bothered by death. I’m not scared of it. I’ve come so close to it so many times that I will greet it like a friend when it finally comes for me.” Anna lowered her gaze. “But I’m not about to go seeking it out. Especially now that I have all of this in my life.” She motioned around her. “Friends, colleagues, whatever you want to call these relationships.”   
  
“Have you tried to seek it out before?” Harry asked calmly.   
  
“Not exactly. But I’ve thought about it. I was resigned to the fact that I likely won’t have a long life so I thought ‘why suffer? Just end it now.’ I used to dig my nails into my wrists when I had the urge to off myself. There were a few times I was convinced that I  _ would _ do something to end my life but it’s been... a long time since then. You don’t need to worry about me anymore.” Anna smiled before continuing. 

“You know, I spent a summer with an elderly couple in rural Slovenia. They lived in the mountains and were married for 57  _ years _ at that point. They were poor but they didn’t care. They had love and contentment for the lives they shared and shared some of it with me, too. They raised five children, had everything they needed, and watched the sunrise every morning with their sheep.” Anna smiled fondly. “They changed my life. From those lessons, I was… ashamed of how I used to think and how much I took for granted. They showed me how little you actually need in life and can still be satisfied. They sparked something in me that made me want to live  _ despite _ the evil in the world. The biggest middle finger I could give to my attackers was to live and be  _ happy. _ So I wanted to find happiness, joy, or beauty wherever I went.

“Life turned into a game at that point... I would try to seek out the beauty around me wherever it was hiding. It’s how I mentally get through all of this.”

“That’s an amazing way to handle a hard life.” Harry looked relaxed in the chair. “I don't know how I would handle everything you’ve been through.”   
  
“Most people would look at you and say the same thing.” Anna laughed. “You work with and command an entire unit of some of the hardest trained and deadliest personnel in the world. The special forces  _ of _ the special forces! These operators would terrify the average office worker.”

“Ah hah. I guess that is true.” He smiled.

“Life is about perspective. We all see and judge the world differently. Some people would look at me and be jealous of all the countries I’ve been to and the sights that I’ve seen. I mean, I also have a heavy-handed dash of danger added to my plate, but you know… Sunsets and bullshit.” Anna shrugged.  “You don’t need to worry about me that way... I have no plans to willingly walk into death’s arms any time soon.”

“I’m glad to hear it. From speaking with Sam, it sounds like he wants to bring in some other operators to help train you. Would you be comfortable with that?” Harry stood.

“I guess so. I feel a little underprepared for that but there’s no time like the present.” Anna stood to escort him to the door. “Sometimes you have to just… dive into things. Sink or swim. Especially when it comes to life and death. You don’t always get a moment to brace yourself.”

“Also true. I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me, Anna. I hope that we can talk again soon… about the relationships you’ve built, more about how training is, and about life. Don’t be a stranger.” Harry walked out into the hallway. “You should be happy to know that Mark is due back in about ten days.”

  
“Oh, that’s good! Thank you for your concern and the information.”   
  
Harry nodded and walked off.


	22. Operators

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna takes on Twitch and Mute in the Arena.

**Chapter Twenty-Two - Operators**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Emmanuelle “Twitch” Pichon

Sam “Zero” Fisher

  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Anna was hiding in the arena building and kept out of sight. Emmanuelle was hunting her down with a knife and something called a Shock Drone. They never explained what it was but she could take some guesses. She listened for sounds of footsteps or wheels. Silence. She pulled out a phone and checked the cameras, several were out and the others showed nothing.  _ Well, I know she is likely by the cameras that are out. _   
  
Anna stepped to the side and saw the drone pointing at her. She rolled to the side but still got zapped. She dashed forward and picked up the drone before Emmanuelle could drive too far and threw it into the sink in the kitchen. The wheels quickly stopped turning.  _ I have to move. She knows where I am. _ Anna went down a hallway and ducked into a side room. She stepped into the closet and shut the doors. Quietly, she climbed up to the shadowy top shelf in the closet and sat still. The shelf was pleasantly sturdy. Emmanuelle stepped into the room and was pacing around with her knife drawn. She checked the opposite side of the bed, under the bed, around all the furniture. She walked over to the closet, opened it quickly, rustled the clothing, and turned away. Anna didn’t breathe.

Emmanuelle cleared the upstairs and moved downwards. Anna didn’t move until she heard her reach the bottom landing. From here, Anna climbed down quietly and exited the window onto the roof. She found a lattice and climbed down it and ran to her duffel on the bench. Sam looked at her and smiled. She took some deep breaths to calm herself from all the adrenaline. He brought a radio to his mouth and informed Emmanuelle that she lost. She radioed back and came outside.   
  
“Where were you?” She called out, walking towards them.

  
“I was in the closet upstairs. I was on the upper shelf.” Anna chuckled and Emmanuelle smiled back.   
  
“That was good. Throwing my drone into the sink in the kitchen was smart. I shouldn’t have told you that they couldn’t jump.” She crossed her arms, impressed.

“Thank you for coming out to help. The more diverse experiences I have, the better.” Anna put her hand out and Emmanuelle shook it.

“I have to go get my drone thanks to you. Good work today.” Emmanuelle clapped Anna on the shoulder and headed back inside to the second level. Anna was happy with the rearrangement of the building over the last week and a half. It’s definitely good to have to change up your thinking on the fly. Sam tapped her on the shoulder and pointed. Mark was walking onto the field with his military duffel. He set it down and kept going towards them.   
  
“Decided to take on Zero afterall?”   
“I didn’t have much of a choice. It’s been good, though. I think it’s also challenging him and the other operators.”   
“Other operators?”   
  
Emmanuelle came out of the house holding her Shock Drona. “Salut, Mute. Welcome back.”

“You’re… going against them?” Mark turned to her concerned.   
  
“They’re not allowed to shoot me so they need to figure out how to capture me alive and safe with me fighting back and trying to escape. It’s been… enlightening for some people more than others.” Anna laughed. “I’ve had to get creative. Zofia was… particularly difficult to get past.”

“Yeh, she can be.” Mark gave her a hug which surprised all three of them. He kept it short though. “How about I try and take you on? I’m a little restless after the flight.”   
  
Anna turned to Sam and shrugged. He replied, “if you’re feeling up to it.” Anna turned back to face Mark and nodded.

“Sure,” She said.   
  
“Lemme go get changed and I’ll meet you back here. I want to see how you’ve improved.” He nodded and headed back the way he came, grabbing his duffel on the way.   
  
“Mark hugged you,” Emmanuelle stated. “I… didn’t take him for the affectionate type.”

“People surprise me all the time,” Sam said. “Intelligence officers are the weirdest of the bunch.”   
  
“True,” Emmanuelle replied. “I’ll be off. Good luck with Mark, Anna. I hope you win.”   
  
Anna thanked her and watched her go. 

“Anything you can share about Mark’s tactics?” Anna turned to the bench and started to tighten her laces on her boots.   
  
“He’s observant. Logical. Focused.” Sam said. “His jammers prevent any cell phone reception so you won’t be able to access the cameras if he uses them. You don’t have other devices to worry about but his jammer usually blocks those too. He will try to out-think you so you have to be reactive and able to change your plan on the go. You’ll have to adapt.”

  
“Okay. Like the others, I’m expecting a few early rounds to go to him and then start to turn to my favour.” Anna sighed. She felt weird about this one but it should be like any other operator she went up against. It’ll be personally hard to hit Mark, though. That’s the challenge here. Mental, not physical. “We might only get one round, though.”   
  
“Head on in when you’re ready.” Sam encouraged her. She nodded and headed inside to hide before Mark arrived.  _ Maybe in the kitchen in one of the upper cupboards. _   
  
She decided to hide in the wooden crates in the storage type room. There, she could get up higher and she had a few exits. For now, she listened, waiting on Mark to approach. Her breathing was shallow and quiet. She heard someone walk around on the floor above her and set something down. She heard some clicks and then a static noise.  _ Jammer? _ She pulled out her phone to access the cameras and saw Mark in full uniform walking away from a black box on the ground.  _ I see you.  _ He stopped and pulled out his own phone and scanned the cameras. He looked at the one in the storage room but Anna wasn’t visible. He put his phone away, drew his knife, and started hunting.   
  
Anna tried to challenge herself and not hide near the exits to make it as difficult as possible to escape. She watched Mark on the cameras going room to room clearing them. She put her phone away and snuck off to the back hallway to hide in one of the rooms that he cleared.   
  
She stacked some crates to try and climb up the hatch.  _ I wish I was Saif, damn! _ Finally she managed to get up, and with a little effort, kicked the crate over making a noisy distraction. She pulled herself up and dodged into the bedroom. She thought of the window escape but he had boarded it up.  _ Shit. _ She heard his footsteps so she did what worked with Emmanuelle and hid in the top shelf of the closet. Mark came into the room, searched around again, opened the closet, turned and left. But it was silent. He was still nearby. Anna held her breath and didn’t flinch.   
  
_ Bang _ !   
  
That got her to flinch but she still didn’t make a sound.  _ He wanted me to expose myself with that shot. _ Anna remained still until she heard him walk away. He was quiet and slow but she was quieter. He crept down the stairs resuming his search. Anna slipped down from the shelf and looked through the rooms looking for a window he didn’t board.  _ Bingo. _ She crept over and slid it open.  _ No good way to climb down but a controlled drop should be okay. _

_ Click. _

Anna spun to see Mark point a pistol at her.   
  
“White powder?”   
Silence.   
_ I’ll take that as a yes. _   
  
Anna ducked and tried to wrestle it out of his hands. He resisted and shoved her to the ground. She rolled to the side and he shot at her feet. The white powder sprayed across the floor. She gripped the night stand and toppled it at him. He stepped to the side to dodge the falling lamp and Anna scrambled to the door around the far side of the stand. Mark was quick to put away his gun and sprint to catch her. He got his arm around her torso and was dragging her to one of the boarded up rooms with a jammer. Anna reached up, grabbed onto his vest and pulled herself closer to him. With this, she tucked her feet under and kicked out his Mark’s knee. He went down but still held tight. Anna used her body weight to smash him into a table in the hall. Picture frames and other items came tumbling down onto them. Anna was in a position to grab his pistol and aim it at him. He reached up to take it from her but she fired.

The powder bullet went between his fingers but missed his body. Anna used her legs to push against his shoulders and slide a little out of his reach. She tucked one of her legs under to stand but he grabbed her outstretched ankle and was pulling her back towards him. She shot at him again and hit him in the shoulder this time. He let her go and put his hands up as a sign of surrender. Anna let her head fall back and took some deep breaths as the muzzle of the pistol sank to the floor. Mark sat up and turned to face her. She handed the pistol back to him.   
  
“There was a camera in that room. I left the window unboarded to bait you.”   
“Figured that out. I go into these unarmed so I have no way of taking the camera system out.”

“Still have to be cautious of being monitored. I wouldn’t have found you otherwise.”

Mark took his mask off and slid his snood down to his neck, pistol holstered. He was breathing heavily. “Zero was right. It’s very hard not to just… instinctively reach for a weapon.”

“Yeah, I’m a special case.” Anna laughed. She took one more deep breath and stood up. She offered a hand to Mark to help him up. He took it and she leaned back to balance them. “You did have me though. How was England?”   
  
“Lonely.” He admitted. “Glad to be back. Glad to see you healed up.”   
  
They started to head downstairs.

“Ribs aren’t 100% but Gustave allows me to do some training with a brace.” She ran her hands across her ribcage feeling the stiff material. “I’ll have to get used to it.”   
  
“When I’m working with Julien, those ceramic plates feel the same way. Just stiff but you gotta put up with it.” He said while opening the door for them both. “Sometimes makes you wonder if the hindered movement is worth it. I’ve definitely left one behind before.”   
  
“Please just take one,” Anna begged. Mark smiled.    
  
Sam looked at both of them waiting for a debrief. Mark motioned to his shoulder and Sam smiled. “I don’t know if you went easy on her or if she did a good job.”   
  
“She did well. I don’t think she went easy on me and I tried not to go easy on her either. She used the environment effectively.” Mark praised. Anna was happy to hear it.   
  
“Good,” Sam nodded, satisfied with that answer. “Let’s get going. Gustave is going to have my head for keeping you out this long.”   
  
“I’ll handle Gustave,” Anna smiled. Mark went to go change and Anna packed her duffel. Sam grabbed a few of his things as well and praised her work today.   
  
“See you later this week, Quill.” He waved over his shoulder and headed back to the building. Anna followed soon after but went to the women’s locker room for a shower. She grabbed a change of clothes and left her duffel outside the door so Mark knew she was still there.   
  
She rinsed the grime from her hair and the sweat from her skin before stepping out and drying off. She got into some more casual clothes and returned to collect her bag. As predicted, Mark waited for her, also freshly showered. He was carrying her bag on his shoulder and had a small bag of belongings to take back to the barracks with him.   
  
“I can get that,” Anna went to grab her duffel but Mark moved it away from her. 

  
“Your ribs aren’t healed.”   
“I was just planning on jumping out a two storey window. I can carry my bag.”   
“Don’t push yourself that far during training.”

Mark pulled her in for a kiss before he started walking back to the main building leaving Anna to follow. The sun was starting to set and Anna couldn’t help but look up to the orange sky.  _ Beautiful. _

“Did you want to grab food at all?” Mark asked her. She nodded.


	23. 2.0

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> New and improved chips!

**Chapter Twenty-Three - 2.0**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill”Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Harry “Six” Pandey

  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Mark and Anna were eating breakfast the next morning comparing schedules. He was grateful for the 36 hour grace period when arriving at the facility to adjust for jet lagged operators.   
  
“I have training at 0700 with Zero. You are doing some firearm training with Sebastien and Timur that morning as well. We have lunch off around the same time. Then I have a meeting with Harry, and you’ll be with Zofia for more CQB. You’ve really been integrated here, haven’t you?” Mark set down his notes. “You even have some physical training with Elias this week and climbing with Håvard.”

“I’ve been here for over six weeks now. I’ve made some friends.” Anna scratched behind one of her ears.   
  
“No, it’s good. It might make you want to stay.”   
“I don’t want to stay… but it  _ is _ making it harder to leave.”

“I think a lot of people would be more comfortable knowing you were here and safe. You’ll be guarded by the best of the best.”   
“I know. I still don’t want to jeopardize the facility, though.”   
“And we don’t want you to jeopardize yourself again either.”

“I don’t make those decisions.”   
  
Mark and Anna wrapped up their meals quickly and went back to her staff quarters to talk in private.   
  
“Grace said that the new versions of the chips are ready to go. Gustave will have to remove both old chips and implant the new ones. Lena made some really impressive improvements while you were away.”   
“Glad to hear it. What are these changes?”   
“Stronger housing, better signal, it will vibrate against the finger bone instead of the nerve so less likely to cause pain. She also used some of her nanobots inside of the capsule so if it bursts again, we will get a surge of energy or something. It’s like a smaller dose of whatever is in her canisters.”   
“Clever.”   
“Grace also made some improvements to the code. If the housing shatters on either chip, the other will automatically receive a GPS signal every minute that it can while the broken chip is still online. It’ll help triangulate in dire situations. Additionally, the chips are able to detect body functions as well. It won’t really pick up hormones or chemicals or anything, but if the heart rate stays the same for too long, it’ll ping the other person to check in. I think she made it to be after 12 hours to account for sleep and such but it’ll help in case one of us goes unconscious. She also just simplified some of the coding to make the whole process faster and less likely to fail.”

“Those sound like good changes.” He nodded a little. Anna was sitting on her bed and leaning against the wall. Mark moved from her desk chair to the bed and laid down. He grabbed her wrist to indicate that he wanted her to lay down too and pulled her in. He laid some soft kisses to her forehead and cupped her cheek. She blushed and allowed him to guide her face to his. He started to caress her waist and hip when she pulled away a little. He looked at her and furrowed his brows at her hesitancy.

“I’m not sure if we should be doing this here,” She expressed her concern, embarrassed.   
  
“There are other couples here, you know.” Mark brushed her hair behind her ear. He noticed that it’s gotten longer while she’s stayed here. “We’re all pretty sure Jack and Yumiko are together. And Emmanuelle may have had a thing with Taina. Siu Mei and Masaru were together for about a year. Others sometimes just… disappear into rooms together. Sometimes barracks are just suddenly locked. We’re human, and we all have needs.”   
  
Anna cuddled into his chest and he held her tightly. Her face looked like she was deep in thought.  _ Bloody intelligence. _ “What are you thinking about?”   
  
“I still want to say yes.”   
“Regarding…?”   
“Dating.”   
“Would it be easier if I asked you outright?”   
“Definitely not.”   
  
“I appreciate your honesty,” Mark smirked and paused. “I’ll have to coordinate with Gustave in getting those chips implanted, then. I’ll leave you to your thoughts.”   
  
Anna felt guilty for ruining the mood but she was nervous about being caught.  _ This isn’t high school, Anna. This is a chance for romance, love, happiness.  _ She soon scolded herself for the L word. Mark started to shift to stand but Anna stopped him. He turned to look at her and noticed her troubled expression. He furrowed his brow again and laid back down to hold her. She pushed him onto his back. She leaned over him and looked at his face. His brown skin, deep brown eyes, short beard, messy hair. He placed his hands on her lower back and upper arm. She leaned down and kissed him deeply, he returned her passion and moved his hand from her arm to the back of her neck.

She broke the kiss despite him wanting to continue. She ran her fingers through his hair and just looked at him. “Why are you so damn attractive?” Mark smiled at her and pulled her back in for a kiss. Even if they weren’t going to get naked again, he was still going to get his fill of her while he could.

\-----

It was a few days later when they finally had time to meet up with Gustave. Mark had the new chips in his possession since yesterday and was waiting outside of the medical bay for Anna. She came up freshly showered but still carried her duffel with her from training. He smiled at her and held up the case. “Are you ready?”   
  
“As ready as I’ll ever be.” Anna replied and opened the door. Gustave was in his office and watched them walk in. He set down some files and went out to meet them.

“Good afternoon,” He greeted them. “Are these the new chips?”   
  
Mark nodded and handed them over. Gustave looked through the top of the case and directed them to the beds. Mark and Anna sat down opposite to each other and waited. Gustave returned with a small cart and instruments for each of them. Scalpels, needles and surgical thread, alcohol wipes, several pairs of fresh gloves, and local anesthetic.   
  
“You know Anna, you’ve spent more time here than many of the other operators,” Gustave teased while measuring the anesthetic into a syringe. His gloved hands disinfected her skin and the new chip, applied a topical anesthetic before he numbed her thumb with the injection. They waited for a minute until the numbing went into effect. Changing gloves once again and adding a mask and cap, he rubbed her hand until he could mentally locate all the pieces of the chip. He delicately made a small but deep incision into Anna’s hand by her index finger, and grabbed a tiny retractor to keep it open. Carefully, he pulled out the small bits of the shattered chip from her hand and dropped them into a dish. Once satisfied, he grabbed the disinfected chip and clipped its claws onto her finger bone. He asked her to move her fingers and she did. He adjusted the chip’s positioning a little, removed the retractor, and grabbed the needle and thread to suture her up. It only required one stitch.   
  
He turned to face Mark. He quickly changed his gloves and repeated the procedure. It went faster with him as his chip was still intact. Anna couldn’t help but notice that the new chips were a little larger than the previous ones but were still undetectable under the skin unless you were looking for it. She was pleased with how easily they were swapped over. It goes to show how a talented surgeon can make all the difference.   
  
“Those incisions will heal in a week or two. Please nothing too strenuous while they close. Come back in a week and I’ll take a look to see if they need the stitch removed or not. Keep them clean, gently wash them with unscented soap every day, and wear clean gloves when you are training. It’ll help it heal faster, but also hide the suture.” Gustave tossed all the used instruments into a metal tray and took it to the sink to be washed and sterilized. “I still think that you should tell Harry about these chips this time. It’ll be good to have him in on it so that he can have you contact Anna should he need to reach her.”

Anna looked over to Mark. “You never told Harry?”

“It was a need to know basis,” Mark muttered, and looked at her coolly. “But I agree that this time, we should tell him how I’ve been keeping in contact with you.”   
  
“I have a meeting with him this afternoon if you want me to break it to him.”   
“Sure, but talk about it like these are the first version of the chip.”   
“I don’t want to lie to him. It’s not worth it.”   
“It doesn’t matter if he has the whole truth in this matter.”   
“He’s the Director.”   
“Doesn’t matter. I’ll come with you to tell him.”   
  
Anna looked at Mark, stunned at how easy it was for him to hide something. But she closed her mouth and nodded.  _ There’s things he’s refused to tell me, and things I haven’t told him either. It’s the nature of the business I suppose. _

\-----

1354 rolled around and Anna went to meet Harry in his office. Mark was behind her hoping to not take up too much of their time. She knocked on the door and Harry invited her in.   
  
“Welcome, Anna… and Mark!” Harry smiled. “Anna and I were due to have a solo session this afternoon.”   
  
“We were hoping to discuss something with you transparently,” Anna clasped her hands together. “It’s about how he and I have been keeping in touch. You and I can just have a shorter session after that.”   
  
“Oh?” Harry grabbed his recorder and offered them seats. “Well, I would love to hear it then.”

Anna and Mark sat down and Harry asked if Mark was staying long enough for tea. He refused and Harry sat with them. They explained about the chips in their hands, and showed him the fresh implants. They explained about the code and how it works across all kinds of telecommunication lines which is why his earlier assumption about no service would not have applied. They did inform Harry that Mark would be the only one to be able to contact her directly and that if he ever needed to reach Anna, he would be the best way to do that.   
  
Harry sat calmly absorbing in all the information. He nodded occasionally but never interrupted. He leaned forward as they were wrapping up their part. “It sounds like it has been quite effective. It's not what those chips were meant for, but it seems like they do the job well in this case. I am pleased to know that it will always be with you, Annaliese. So that in whatever situation you are in, you have Rainbow to assist you.”   
  
“As am I,” Anna smiled, relieved that the truth was out. She reached over and squeezed Mark’s wrist. She nodded to him, and he stood to leave. Harry watched the interaction and waited for Mark to close the door behind him.   
  
“Where did we end off last time?” Harry pulled out his notes. “Ah, yes… Your relationship with Mark! How… fitting. Would you like to continue that conversation?”   
  
“Sure.”   
“You can start when you’d like.”   
“He hasn’t approached me about our relationship status since he got back but it did come up. We were in my quarters talking about the new chips and we kissed again. A few of his touches indicated that he would want to have a physical relationship but I was too nervous about it… being  _ here _ . It feels inappropriate. I view this as a professional space. One where he works. I viewed it as basically going past professional boundaries.”   
“Mhm. While we don’t necessarily encourage romantic relationships within the team, they have happened. We do want our operators to have a working relationship though, and socializing is a big part of that. Much of the socialization happens here because this is a common area for them across country borders. It’s not strange or unusual to see one of the Russian operators having drinks with a German one in the kitchen. And it’s comical to see some of our English speaking operators making up a plot to a movie in a language that they don’t speak.”   
“I understand, but I’m not an operator. I don’t feel like I belong here. I don’t feel like I am entitled to these relationships as it sounds like they are meant for team building.”   
“Where do you feel like you belong then?”   
_ England. _

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat without answering. Harry waited patiently but sighed when she refused to address the question.   
  
“Anna, you could say ‘I don’t know’ if you are unsure. You could say anywhere but here and it wouldn’t be a wrong answer.”   
  


“England,” Anna admitted. “I feel at home in York. With Mark.”   
  
Harry smiled. “England does have a lot of charm and a lot of the characteristics that you find yourself drawn to. The rustic country life, the history, the art and architecture. It’s all there so it makes perfect sense for you.”

“I attract danger and I don’t want to settle anywhere where innocent people could be hurt.”   
“That is also understandable. You care so deeply for others. Now, I have a theoretical question for you... If there was no danger to you or others, no one at all seeking to hunt you down, what would you want your life to look like?”   
  


Anna thought about it. “I think a house in the English countryside would be lovely. A little vegetable plot and lots of trees. I would be working in the museums as a curator maybe. Or at least be a conservator and do restoration like I was before. I have the education for it, but I would need to go back to school to brush up on my history. I would be… married? I guess.”

“You guess?”   
“Yes. I haven’t thought about dating until recently. It always seemed out of reach.”   
“I see. And do you want to be married? Or in a long-term relationship?”   
“Of course! It would be comforting to be able to rely on someone like that.”

“And yet you resist having a relationship with Mark. You bring up these boundaries and fears that you set for yourself so often, but love has always been a vulnerable thing. I think you should talk to him about it again, and listen to him. He knows himself as well as you know yourself and I want you both to be very straight-forward about things. Trust each other! I know it might be a challenge to both you with your needs to protect information and remove vulnerabilities but I think it would be worth it. I’m not sure if you’re scared of him getting hurt or if you’re scared of getting hurt.”

“Him getting hurt is what would hurt me.”   
  


Harry waited.

  
“I’m scared,” Anna admitted quietly.   
  
“Relationships can be scary when they’re new. Everything is uncertain, and you don’t truly know the person until you spend that much time with them.” Harry smiled. “ _ Talk _ to Mark.”


	24. Decision

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Team is gaining more confidence with Anna. Zero and Harry make a request of her.

**Chapter Twenty-Four - Decision**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Håvard “Ace” Haugland

  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Click. (Outgoing message.) Click, click, click, click. (Are you available?)

_ Buzz, buzz.  _ (Yes.) _ Dit, dit, dit, pause, dah, dah, dit, dah. _ (SQ?)

Dah, dit, dah, dag. (Yes.)

_ Buzz, buzz. _ (Affirmative.)

Anna headed back to her staff quarters to meet Mark. She had a lot to think about after she left Harry’s office. She kind of wanted to go to the empty hall in F Wing to sing but she wanted to be comforted by Mark more. And Harry did suggest that they talk about this whole relationship thing after all.   
  
She got to her room before he did and opened the door. She propped it open on the deadbolt and went to lay on her bed. She covered her face with her hands and took some deep breaths.  _ Why couldn’t this be an easier decision? I just have to say the first thing that comes to my mind. _   
  
Mark tapped on the door before entering. He closed the door behind him and locked it securely like they always do. He sat on the edge of the bed and put his hand on her leg. “Did the session go okay?”   
  
Anna sat up and looked at him. “Calling me your girlfriend wouldn’t be a lie.”   
  
Mark’s face changed expressions rapidly. From concern, to realization, to happiness, and back to concern. “That's... a sudden decision.”   
  
“No, it’s really not.”   
“Anna… Are you sure?”   
“Yes. Ever since I heard that you called me that, my heart has been fluttering. All I want to do is kiss you. I legitimately want to move to England and settle down but I don’t know how that’s going to work, but it’s something I would want to try and figure out. I want to-”   
  
Anna couldn’t finish as Mark pulled her into a kiss. She didn’t resist at all. He ran his hands from her cheek to the back of her neck through her hair. He pulled away and rested his forehead against hers. Anna had a small smile on her face.   
  
“I had a crush on you when we were younger,” He admitted. Anna pulled away and looked at him. Mark laughed. “It’s why I let you win at Mancala. So you would keep playing against me.”   
  
Anna reached over, grabbed a pillow from behind her, and smacked him with it. “You’re still a jerk for that.”   
  
“Yeh, I’m okay with you calling me that.” Mark put up his arm and blocked the assault. He pushed her back into the other pillow and laid beside her. This time, he was the one leaning over her and kissing her instead. Anna ran her fingers down his chest through his shirt and settled on his waist. He pulled back again from their dancing tongues when her fingers slid under his bottom hem.   
  
Perhaps he  _ was _ going to see her naked again.   
  
\-----

They didn’t have anyone bother them while they were in her room and Anna was grateful for it. It calmed some of her fears about intimacy and she knew that her tactical training was important now more than ever to quell any attacks against her. She meant what she said about moving to England but she knows that her presence there could pose a threat to the citizens around her. There would be a lot of planning necessary to prevent and to stop it when it does happen. They talked about it more when they were laying in each other’s arms. They agreed that living out in the country would have fewer people at risk should anything happen. Mark also wanted to talk with some of the other SAS members about how they keep their families safe. They both knew that Anna needed special considerations.

Anna looked over at the clock and groaned.   
  
“I have to get up and shower. I don’t want to smell like sex when I meet up with Håvard.” She rolled onto her back and covered her face again. Mark reached over and ran a finger down her side which gave her a shiver. She propped herself up into a sitting position. She reached over and lightly smacked him with the back of her hand but he caught it and kissed her where the incision was still healing.

Anna took her hand back and played with the threads. “I wonder if I should cancel.”   
  
“No, there are other things you can do to prepare you for climbing that involve less hands. Equipment knowledge, planning entry and exit, even practicing knots wouldn’t be strenuous.” Mark assured her. “Rappelling would be important as well.”   
  
“Alright, alright,” Anna climbed over him to get off the bed and went to the small bathroom in her quarters. She only had a shower stall in there but it was all she needed. A quick rinse, and back out to get dressed. Mark was doing up the button on his jeans. She walked to her closet and started tossing clothes to the bed. She also pulled out her duffel with the climbing gear inside.   
  
She walked to the bed and set it down. The bag jingled with all the metal fixtures banging together. She started to get dressed. Mark got nosey and peeked in the bag. She invited him to dig through it and he started pulling out her harnesses, ropes, carabiners, gloves, helmet, and more. He nodded in approval and stashed it all back in. Anna was mostly dressed at this point and went to grab shoes. Mark looked around for his shirt and found it under her desk. They left her room together.   
  
Håvard said that he wanted to meet her at the Arena so that’s where she headed. Mark went back to the barracks to shower and change his clothes too. Apparently he planned to do some off the books training with Sebastien at the range so Anna waved him goodbye and headed outside.

It was a cloudy afternoon but she was happy that it wasn’t supposed to rain. She adjusted her bag and entered the lobby of the Arena. Håvard was there and looked excited. Anna held up her left hand to show the incision.

“Gotta take it easy on me,” She called out to him. “Doctor’s orders.”

Håvard started to frown and grabbed her hand to inspect it. “How did this happen?”

“I had a little shrapnel in my hand that he had to remove. It’s not too bad but we do have to be careful.” Anna smiled. “Might have to delay the actual climbing to another time.”   
  
“Okay,” Håvard nodded. “I want you in top shape! Did you need to change?”   
  
“No, I think these clothes will be fine. I just need to get harnessed up.” Anna smiled.   
  
“Easy!” Håvard laughed and motioned for her to enter the area. “Have you done any climbing or rappelling before?”   
  


“I went maybe twice in university, but I don’t remember much honestly.” She started to walk in towards the structure in the middle. Håvard followed, already completely in his gear.

“Good! So you know kind of what to expect. I have already secured some top ropes so that we could go up but I might just have to show you that instead. We can start with getting you familiar with the gear again. Is it all in the bag? Let me see what you have!” Håvard looked bubbly with the idea of training someone. Anna set her bag down on a bench. Håvard nodded and made some comments under his breath in Norwegian as he pulled items out and laid them beside the duffel. “Perfect! Do you remember how to put the harness on?”   
  
“Yep,” Anna said and slid it on, tightening and clipping it into place. Håvard walked around her and pulled on certain attachment loops, and adjusted things. He asked her how it felt. “A little snug, but workable.”   
  
“Snug is okay. The straps will settle in the buckles and it will get more comfortable.” Håvard smiled and took the next ten minutes explaining the types of ropes, carabiners, belay devices, and how to hook it all up. He showed her on himself, and invited her to follow on her own harness. They also practiced various knots, wrapping ropes securely, and also got her up on the wall without climbing. She leaned back in the harness and Håvard showed her the different methods of climbing.   
  
“Climbing for fun or for fitness will be using your hands. In tactical use like this, we have to have our hands free. Our ropes are much tighter and there is different equipment to keep us safe. I asked the ladies to pick up a few extra things when they took you out so that you can feel the difference.” Håvard got off the wall and helped Anna down as well. He unlaced her ropes and threaded on some additional rigging before tying the knots again.   
  
“This is like a little retractor so it will pull the rope towards you. Your body weight will resist that. So when you walk up, it makes sure there is no slack. But your body weight is also enough to pull the rope out of the retractor as well. So if you start walking down, it will release some of the rope to hold you. We just need to figure out the setting you need to tension it against your specific weight.” Håvard got her to lean back against her harness and to try taking a step up the wall. She put her foot up and quickly he adjusted the retractor. She took a few more steps and felt like it was too tight so he adjusted it again. Slowly taking a few steps up and back, they got it to a tension that worked with her well.   
  
Håvard looked pleased and got them to the ground. She was handed a powder rifle and told to climb and carry it to the top. She cast out a grappling hook, held the rifle in her hands, and ascended the wall. Håvard was beside her the entire way up and showed her how to stand up at the top. She complied and it went smoothly.

“You’re a natural!” Håvard threw his hands into the air.

“I mean, I don’t think I really need to know the tactical parts of things as much,” Anna said. “But I guess it would be helpful in terms of escape and being able to take out the people chasing me. Or being able to move quietly vertically.”   
  
“There are a lot of uses for this kind of movement,” Håvard said. “Even for fun climbs, this gear allows you to not need a spotter or someone to manage your extra rope! It is still recommended to have a spotter, of course, unless you want me to come rescue you!” He clicked his teeth behind a grin before winking and nudging her with his elbow. He laughed.

Anna rolled her eyes and smiled. Håvard nudged her again. “Let’s take a photo to show my student doing so well!”   
  
“No, no photos. I don’t want people to know where I am or what I look like.” Anna took a step away from him as he pulled out his phone.   
  
“Awww… That makes sense. I just got excited about it all. You are doing well though! Let’s rappel down.” Håvard slid his phone back into a zippered pocket.

\-----

Anna had everything packed into her duffel and went back to her quarters. She wasn't really sweaty from the climb but her legs were a little tired. She tossed her bag into the closet, slipped her shoes off and sat down at her desk. She thought about buzzing Mark but for shooting, it’s not a good idea. She’s often worried about catching him at a bad time and messing with his aim so maybe they’ll need to test that out later.   
  
She pulled forward her pocket planner and flipped open to this week. She crossed off ‘Climbing w/ Ace’ from today and looked at what was happening the next few days.   
  
PT w/ Blitz

Interrogation w/ Thatcher

Arena w/ Zero (Oryx)

PT w/ Rook

Arena w/ Zero (Glaz)

Hunt w/ Kapkan

  
Sam was kind enough to not overwhelm her. He set it to two things per day, four days on, three days off. The operators had similar schedules but it was five days on, two days off, and more things per day to keep them active and in shape. She had a little physical training between her getting clearance from Gustave and Mark getting back and she felt pretty good about it. Elias was known even amongst this team as being in superb shape so she was intimidated at first. Mostly he got her going on something and then he did his own thing.  _ I think he knows how much I don’t fit in around here. _   
  
She flipped to next week.   
  
Escape w/ Quill   
  
She swallowed. Apparently there were some operators that were interested in learning how she escapes from various bindings, locked rooms, mental mapping, and lockpicking. Sam was also trying to convince her to host a lesson on quick change artistry but it’s something that requires more planning. And it’s not something that you can really do with their uniforms. It would really only be applicable for when they’re undercover, or in civilian clothes doing VIP protection.   
  
She closed the planner and rested her head on her hand. She sighed and closed her eyes for a moment to calm her nerves.   
  
After a moment, she pulled out a notebook and started figuring out what she wanted to cover in her lesson.


	25. Lesson

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna talks to some of the trainers about escape

**Chapter Twenty-Five - Lesson**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Gilles “Montagne” Touré

Mike “Thatcher” Baker

Erik “Maverick” Thorn

Jalal “Kaid” El Fassi

Sam “Zero” Fisher

  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Days passed. Anna has now been at the facility for nearly two months and she was getting restless. Mark tried to reassure her that she was indeed safe here but she doesn’t believe it.  _ It’s never actually safe. _ She found it really hard to focus on her lesson planning and she instead found herself daydreaming about leaving.

_ Knock, knock. _

Anna was jolted out of her reverie. She quickly stood and went to the door and peeked through the hole. It was Mark and he was holding a take away container.  _ Shit, I forgot about lunch. _ Anna unlocked and opened the door for him.

“I’m so sorry. I completely lost track of time.” Anna looked embarrassed.

“It’s fine, I brought-“ Mark caught sight of all the papers across her desk and on the floor in a semicircle. “What’s all this?”

“Zero and Harry want me to host a class on escaping. They think it will be beneficial. So I’m trying to figure out what I want to cover, but there has been so much and they’ve all been so different that I don’t know what I want to focus on.” Anna took the container and sat on the bed. “Or even where to start really.”

Mark took a moment to go around to the pages and look at a few of them. On each page there is a short outline of the situation, environment, and how she escaped. He looked up and estimated there being around 40-45 different pages spread around. He looked over to Anna who was demolishing her fried noodles.

“Are all of these different?” Mark looked horrified. Anna nodded.

“There’s more in the drawer there but I ruled them out for being repetitive or irrelevant due to insufficient information.” Anna took another bite of noodles. Mark kept reading the pages, looking paler and paler after each one. Anna felt bad and interrupted him. “What kind of escapes do you think would be most useful for the Team?”

“Uh,” Mark felt dizzy from all her descriptions. “Anything stealthy would be good, being locked in a cell.”

“Lock picking? I might try to encourage you all to work on your flexibility, too. It’s been helpful in a few tight squeezes before.” Anna took another mouthful of noodles. Mark kept picking up more and more papers. His facial expression was obsessive and it scared her. Anna stood up from the bed and set her food down on the desk. She grabbed Mark and guided him to the bed. He resisted, wanting to read more. Anna grabbed his chin and forced him to look at her. “Sit down… please.”

Mark stared into her warm eyes and sighed. He moved to the bed and sat down. He reached forward and picked up a paper from the floor but Anna grabbed it from him and put it back where it was. She went to the drawer and picked up a stack of papers. There were easily a hundred there. Mark looked sick. Anna sat down beside him.

“The examples I was thinking of using were some of the worst ones. I want the Team to learn from my failures  _ and _ then from my successes after those failures. Those are all very complicated.” Anna was flipping through the pile of pages in her hand and was pulling out a few. She handed them to Mark. “These ones are more typical attacks that I go through. They’re no more than a mugging. I told you that I normally escape before they can get me or during transit. This wasn’t a lie. Here are some more like that. Here’s the one that happened to me when I was with you at New Years. These on the floor were the 24 worst attacks I escaped from. Twenty-four in 12 years. The others that aren’t as bad but I was pretty proud of myself so I wanted to consider them.”

Anna stood and put the remainder of the pile back on the desk. She grabbed her food again and took a bite. She covered her mouth and spoke, “let me know if you have any questions.”

“How did you do this all?” Mark looked up from the papers.

“Sadly, practice.”

“I don’t like that answer.”

“Neither do I.”

Mark looked up at her dully. Anna shrugged. “I’m not going to lie to you. It sucked. The first couple escapes went terribly. I was caught and returned often, I was scared out of my mind, the pain was debilitating, I was confused. I’m mostly ashamed that I complied a few times in an attempt to be let go. They never did so I stopped complying. I was sixteen when I was first kidnapped. Like truly kidnapped.”

“There’s no half kidnapping, Anna.” Mark stood and tossed the other papers to her desk. “You were either kidnapped or you weren’t.”

“When I was younger, apparently there were threats out about me. I was twelve so you knew me then. People tried to come along and take me while shopping with my parents. A handful of attempts between 12 and 16.” Anna took another bite of food, chewed, and swallowed. “I left home at just before 18 to keep my family safe. I ran away. I was kidnapped-kidnapped at that point about five times? Between 16 and 18… They thought I was kidnapped  _ again _ when I left and I had the RCMP out looking for me around the country. That was also good practice for escaping detection. I’m lucky that Canada is as big as it is and that a good portion of it is wilderness.”

Anna quickly downed the rest of her noodles and tossed the box away. She took a tissue and wiped her mouth before kissing Mark on the cheek. “Thanks for lunch. It was tasty. Do I get you for dessert?”

“No,” Mark sighed. He pulled her into a hug. “Out of all the intelligence I’ve ever collected, you’re the person I regret learning about the most. And you’re also the person I least regret. Bloody hell, Anna. This… this and then you  _ flirt _ ?”

“What can I say? I like noodles.”

“Please… stop. It’s not going to be easy for me to go through this all with you.”

“You don’t need to help if it’ll bother you that much…”

“It’ll help me understand.”

Anna pulled out of the hug and led him to the bed. She sat him down once again before collecting all the papers and sitting to face him.

“Should we go by severity or chronologically?”

——-

Anna was sitting atop a desk at the front of one of the conference rooms looking at her notes. It was two days later. She had a large stack of papers beside her and maps at some of the tables around the edge of the room. She told Harry and Sam that she didn’t want to know who all was coming because that was part of the fun. The anxiety makes her quicker on her feet.   
  
Sam was the first to enter. He had his bag slung over his shoulder in his typical fashion and glanced over one of the maps before walking up to one of the front desks. Anna glanced up at him and then back down at her papers.   
  
“Are you here for moral support or to learn?”   
“A bit of both.”   
  
Anna smiled softly. Soon after, Gilles and Mike were coming in together. Both were freshly showered so they must have had training together. They sat near the front by Sam. A little after that, a very tall man entered quietly and took a desk to the far left of the room. Erik brought up the near soon after and sat behind Sam towards the middle.   
  
Anna met the others but the tall one? He was one of the elusive few. She slid down from the desk and walked over to him.   
  
“We haven’t met. I am Annaliese.” She held out her hand.   
  
The tall man stood and took it politely. “Jalal El Fassi. Kaid. Groupe d'Intervention de La Gendarmerie Royale. GIGR.”   
  
“Nice to finally meet you. GIGR… That’s the group that Saif is with?” Anna asked innocently.   
  


“Saif works with me, but he is not officially GIGR.”   
“I understand. Thank you.”   
  
Mark was right, these elusive few seem to be in their own world, their training is everything. Anna went back to her desk and Jalal sat down.

“Is this everyone then?” Anna asked Sam who nodded in response. “Well… welcome. I don’t know if you’re here for stories of this mysterious civilian or if you’re here to learn but we’re going to cover a bit of both.”   
  
“You all have different training, different specialities, different teams… but when you’re on your own, you only have yourself to rely on. It can be complicated. There is no one to radio you information, no one to give you cover, no one to bandage you up when you have a wound that you cannot reach. Escape is very much a testament to self-reliance in some of the worst ways.”

Anna handed out an escape page to each operator and sat back down. “These are some examples of… situations that I’ve had to go through. Summary of today would be going over some skills that have been useful across many of these escapes but I imagine some of this’ll be a review.”   
  
Anna reached over and picked up the remote from the top of the desk. She sat up on it again and clicked to the first slide. Listed there were skills:   
  
\- lock picking

\- mental mapping

\- engineering

\- rock climbing

\- contortion*

\- be piteous*

“The first four will likely be the most helpful to you. The last two will be harder for those that are built like a brick wall.” Anna motioned to Jalal and Gilles. “Lock picking is pretty straight forward. I have some practice locks here that I can show you. Mental mapping is the ability to recall the area around you after only seeing it for a few seconds. It is invaluable in not just escaping but in other missions and deployments... I’m sure you can imagine. Engineering is pretty vague, but it’s basically being able to creatively assemble things in a manner that could aid in moving something, opening something, or otherwise surpass your own physical limitations. An easy example would be prying a door open. Rock climbing or climbing in general is also straight forward.

“I’m sure you all are pretty versed in those with no issues. Everyone that I’ve met on this Team has been clever, intelligent, resourceful, or otherwise. The only one that might be new is the lock picking but we’ll get there. The last two can be a little hard because anyone that is larger in stature will have natural physical obstacles to have to overcome when it comes to flexibility and being able to fit and move through tight areas. This could potentially result in fewer exit points. But contortion and climbing together can allow you to traverse difficult terrain with no issue.

“The tactical climbing that you do is great for getting into places, however, not so much for getting out. I will fully encourage you all to get your hands on a rock face and do some regular rock climbing or bouldering. There was one instance in… Belgium? Belgium, yes, where I had to escape through the interior of the walls and had to dodge their wiring. I think they had rodents because the wiring was in worn condition and had some exposed copper so I had to climb the entire distance hanging from horizontal supports instead of just walking. Wall joints are also staggered so there were times where I had to move up over something or squeeze through other narrow areas without electrocuting myself.” Anna sighed. 

“As for being piteous, Mike and I went over trying to gain sympathy from your kidnapper during the interrogation training. I’m sure that you all have probably had at least some training in this as well. Faking illness makes you seem less useful, less able, less of a threat. I am a personal fan of biting the edge of your tongue to make it look like your lungs are injured. You cough and spit out some blood and they take you a little more seriously that way.

“However, this can go to the extremes as well. I think I told this story when I first got here last year where I had to break my own hand and wrist at one point to get out of a situation.” Anna held up her right hand.   
  
“What would warrant that?” Erik asked.   
  
“My kidnappers wanted me to write a letter impersonating the Russian president threatening the US president’s family. I had a gun to my head, an empty stomach, and they had food across the room. It was hard to say no so I had to make it so I  _ couldn’t _ say yes.” Anna shrugged. “From there, I was beaten for several days, tortured, starved, you name it for about a month. In my emaciated state, I could finally contort enough to squeeze through the bars on the window. I had to hide out in their area for a little while to eat and rest, and then I dug under one of their chain link fences to freedom.”

  
Kalal’s eyebrows furrowed. Mike leaned back in his chair. “Why didn’t you tell me this when we were doing the interrogation training earlier?”   
  
“This level of survival is normal for me and will be more abnormal for you. As I have said to Mark a dozen times over, I don’t have a team to back me, nor do I have the training that you do,  _ nor _ do I have the physical size and strength that many of you do. My tactics have to be different. I either do or die.” Anna shrugged again. “You will approach things from a different angle based on what you know and what you know you are capable of. You all are smart enough to analyze your situation and you can determine your necessary actions from there.”   
  
“How often do you have people wanting you to impersonate political leaders?” Sam asked.   
  
“Oh, all the time.” Anna tilted her head. “There’s a very good reason why I intentionally do  _ not _ learn languages. It helps keep those countries safe. Unfortunately, there are many world leaders that do their correspondence in English. There’s not a lot that I can do about that. For example, I think I’ve been pressured to imitate Her Majesty the Queen of England at least a dozen or so times in the last decade. President of Russia and United States are also popular ones. As are the leaders of UAE, Saudi Arabia, and several other Middle Eastern countries. China, of course. North  _ and _ South Korea. Other European countries as well. It’s all over the place.”   
  
There was silence in the room.  _ Time for some demonstrations. _


	26. Skills

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The lesson continues.

**Chapter Twenty-Six - Skills**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Gilles “Montagne” Touré

Mike “Thatcher” Baker

Erik “Maverick” Thorn

Jalal “Kaid” El Fassi

Sam “Zero” Fisher

  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Anna stood up from her desk again. “Who wants to go first?”   
  
“What do you mean?” Mike asked.   
  
“I gave you each a situation that I escaped from. These are all real. I have the scars to prove it… So whose situation are we going over first?” Anna opened her hands and raised her eyebrows. Gilles held his paper up. Anna stepped forward and took it. “Ah, South Africa. I choose this one as an example of mental mapping.”

She walked over to one of the maps laying down on the table and waved them over. She only had parts of it uncovered. She showed them the route of how her captors brought her in and where her cell was. Those were the hallways that were visible. She talked about how she escaped her cell and managed to get a few exploratory runs in. She was caught, beaten, but Anna slowly removed blank sheets of paper to expose more of the compound. She talked about how she knew the windows from her prior runs and got a better look of the outside that way too. Because she knew where she was going, she was caught less and less and would return to her cell to avoid suspicion. She took a marker out and made notes on the edge of the paper of guard routes, times, and which guards were the worst ones. The Team brainstormed with this information how they would have escaped before she got Gilles to read out her actual escape route while she traced it on the paper.

“Who is next?” Anna smiled.   
  
Mike handed her the page. “Ooooh Germany! Lock picking.”   
  
Anna walked them to a few maps down and it was much smaller this time. She talked about how it was just a house and she wasn’t given time to do much mental mapping. She described the cage she was put into with several padlocks, and how the room also had other locks on the windows, doors, and cabinets. She went to the front and grabbed a fabric bag that made a rattle sound when she returned. Anna drew out a length of chain from the bag and locked it into a large loop using a transparent practice padlock. She unzipped a small black case of lock picks and pulled out a lever and a pick and went to work, swiftly picking the padlock and undoing the chain. She closed it again and showed them how to apply pressure to the pins using the lever, how to press the pins upwards with the pick, and then to turn the lever. 

Anna pulled out several more locks and clipped them to the chain. She set the lockpicks in the centre and encouraged them all to try. She gave them a chance and a few minutes to make their attempts. Mike got one loose. Jalal followed soon after. The others looked focused but she had to call it for now, promising them that they can borrow them to practice on their own afterwards.

Jalal handed his page over to Anna. Anna looked it over quickly before speaking. “This one is for a few things. Being piteous, and also contortion.” She walked everyone to the far side of the room where there was another map. She had parts of it hidden. She pointed to the small room where she was being held captive. She managed to get some mental mapping in on a few runs but there weren’t many exits so she had to think of another way. More of the map was exposed now. She went over how she allowed herself to be hit in sensitive spots such as the ribs during her assaults so that she could blame them when she was ‘unable’ to move. They ended up taking her to the med bay there where she got out through a window that could open only about 20cm. She dropped down about two floors before taking off.   
  
“Now, Erik also got to experience this when you had to retrieve me from Afghanistan a few months ago. Craig was the one to take me from the back of the vehicle and threw me to the ground in front of the insurgent held border crossing. It really did hurt and I did make a sound at the impact but I used it to my advantage. I purposefully left blood on my face to make it seem like I was unable to fight back, and I cradled my ribs a little while laying on the ground. I mean, it got me an additional kick to the jaw but I also used that to spit blood out at the asshole. It worked really well!”

Sam and Erik both held their papers up but Anna grabbed Erik’s. “True contortion! This time in England.” Mike perked up. 

Anna walked back over to the other side of the room and grabbed the canvas bag again. She pulled out a length of fabric and held it out. “I need someone to tie up my wrists behind my back.”

Mike stepped forward and took it from her. She turned around and put her hands behind her on her lower back. Mike started wrapping the fabric around her wrists, twisting it occasionally. “I need for it to be tighter than that, Mike. Kidnappers aren’t so gentle.” Mike looked up to the back of her head and condescendingly cinched the fabric to where it was slightly pinching her skin.

“Better?” He asked while knotting it.   
  
“Much, thank you.” Anna turned to face them all again and raised her eyebrows. She crouched down and slipped her arms under her feet so that they were in front of her instead. There, she looked at the knots that Mike tied and used her teeth and fingers to loosen it quickly and she was free. She pulled out a second strip of fabric and handed them to Jalal. She sat down in a chair with arms and instructed him to tie her wrists to the chair. “Once you get your hands free, you can undo any other knots, blindfolds, gags, and anything hindering you.” Jalal finished with her wrists and she thanked him.

“I don’t know if any of you noticed, but I was sliding my forearms towards him as he was tying me. It makes it so that they are tying a thicker part of your arm and the binds are a little looser.” Anna slid her arms backwards towards her and the fabric slouched slightly. “You can do this with handcuffs too while they’re locking them.” She adjusted her sitting so that one arm was behind her at an uncomfortable, awkward angle and she could bend down to the other to undo the knot with her mouth. Once that hand was loose, she turned to the other and undid that knot with her hand and mouth.

She stood and put the fabric back into the canvas bag. She told the story of New Years but left Mark out of it. How she was grabbed, put into the back of a vehicle, buckled in at a poor angle, then how she attacked him by basically folding in half and kicking his head until he crashed the vehicle, and then the struggle to get free. Mike looked worried. “What city?”   
  
“...Just outside of York,” Anna looked at him knowing he would understand the bigger situation. Mike paused and nodded.  _ I’ll have to warn Mark that he’s going to be questioned. _

“Last, but not least, engineering.” Anna held out her hand to Sam who gave up his page. She walked them over to the final map and it was a top down view of a mechanic’s garage. “I was in Australia. I had already taken my exploratory runs and found a captor that was talking on the radio to his buddies. They were about an hour out and I needed to leave before they got there. Since there were kidnappers still there, I needed to do it as quietly as possible too.”   
  
She took out a marker and asked the Team where they would look first and what they could use. They all called out various spots in the room. Drawers, cabinets, toolboxes, the vehicles and Anna circled them all on the paper. None of them were saying what she wanted to hear though. She even labelled it on the map. Those acetylene canisters were her way of escaping with flair. They had enough of it to weld an entire fleet of school buses together and it was just sitting there waiting for her.

Anna subtly drew an arrow to the label on the map while the others brainstormed ideas. Sam noticed.

"I thought you said you had to be quiet? You didn’t blow the place up, did you?" He asked with an accusatory tone.

"It looked like an accident. It's  _ fine _ ! They had other hostages in the compound that first responders found and rescued, and the police were there when the other gang members arrived so they were all arrested. It worked perfectly!" Anna laughed.

"You're crazy," Sam blinked.

"I'm resourceful. Two birds and all that." Anna smiled. "So the garage is here and the warehouse where the hostages were being kept was all the way over here. Totally safe. There was a door between the garage and the office where the kidnapper was. By looking at the hinges, I could tell that it opened outwards. I blocked him in the room in a way that would fall when the explosion happened but not from applied pressure. Then I opened the canisters in the garage and let them run while I picked the lock on the door to the outside. I also grabbed a set of keys for the car that was raised up on the lift. Once outside and at a safe distance, I waited a little longer for the gas to build. Then I pressed the remote starter for the car which ignited the gas and took the roof off.

"I didn't know that there were two doors to the office because he came out looking frantic from a door to my right. I was hidden so he didn't see me. You could also hear emergency sirens at this point so I took off… but not before opening the doors to the hostage warehouse so that they could be found."

"You’re fuckin' nuts," Mike muttered.

"Hey, I was really proud of this one. The news the next day said nothing about arson… Just about the 30 women rescued from trafficking." Anna crossed her arms. "They thanked the 'freak accident' for saving their lives. I call it a win." Anna grinned deviously. “We do have a little time left… about 15 minutes. Did you want to do some mental mapping exercises or practice more with the locks? Or both?”   
  
“Mental mapping would be helpful,” Mike admitted.   
  
“I want the locks,” Erik said, determined. Anna handed him the canvas bag and he took a seat at a desk far away. Jalal joined Erik.   
  
Anna pulled out some paper with gridlines on it and distributed them with pens to the remaining operators. She took her spot on the desk at the front and took the projector remote again and clicked to her next slide, a white screen. “Mental mapping is just memory games. I’ll flip to a slide and it will go blank in three seconds. The following two slides will take less and less time. Here is an example.”

She clicked to a screen that had a grid on it with some walls, greyed out areas, rooms, and an arrow leading through it. She had everything nicely colour coded and clear. She told them what the colours meant and clicked through. The colours faded so that the map was in all black and white now. “Are you all ready?”   
  
Sam, Mike, and Gilles nodded. Anna clicked through to a slide that showed a different layout. Three seconds later, it blinked to white. “Who feels comfortable with making a map of that?”   
  
Mike sighed and had something half drawn on his page. Gilles was still drawing his out but it was accurate. Sam’s were mostly right. Anna nodded to each of them.   
  
“You could have a mask over your head that you manage to flick off. You only have a few seconds before your captor realizes and slides it back into place. Or maybe you’re in an isolated room, like an interrogation room, and someone enters. You get a brief moment of looking through the door to the hallway beyond. It really can be that fast. But those seconds are precious and can aid in your exit.” Anna motioned to the papers. “Even incomplete maps give you a starting point to your planning. Here’s another one.”   
  
This was a different map and only showed for two seconds this time. They were a little more ready and some of them got the same or more than last time. Anna smiled. “Last one. Let’s go!” She clicked it again and it disappeared after one second. They compared their maps but Anna tutted and collected their papers and replaced them with blank ones.   
  
“Now, from memory, please redraw the first map.” Anna challenged. “The one you saw for three seconds.” Gilles got to work quickly while the others kind of paused before taking pen to paper. Their maps were varying levels of successful but more or less effective. She shrugged and clicked it back up to the screen.   
  
“A few of you would have escaped  _ faster _ because of your maps,” Anna shrugged. “It’s not to say that you _ can’t _ escape if you don’t know a route, I’m just saying that it speeds things up. You hesitate less when you know which rights and lefts to take, where vents are, if there are any hiding spots.”

“May I ask? What’s the worst escape you went through?” Gilles asked suddenly.   
  
“Saudi Arabia. I was caught and flogged. Eventually my back started going numb after the first two or three strikes but it took a long time to heal. The scars are brutal.” Anna nodded and looked down. She didn’t even have to think about her answer. It was always this one. “It went wrong because I tried to help someone else and they couldn’t keep up. I couldn’t mentally leave him behind to die but in the end we both almost died for it. He was fourteen and died from his flogging.”   
  
“How many lashes were you handed?” Erik and Jalal looked up from the locks. Anna sighed and unzipped her hoodie and let it fall down her back to her elbows. She turned and pulled her hair to the side. She was wearing a tank top under it and the scarring was visible quite clearly. Anna always seemed to wear sleeves that went to her elbows and high necklines. They thought she was modest, but they now know that the modesty was hiding her scarring. They also noted the bullet hole exit scar on her shoulder, the parallel scars below that from the chain link fence, and a scar along the back of her left arm.   
  
“I got 30 a week for six weeks.” Anna slid her jacket back into place and turned to face them again. “Only the ones towards the end left scars. The others just left me with nerve damage. I was supposed to receive ten weeks’ worth of flogging but I got out.”   
  
The Team were all staring at her now. Anna looked at each of them but paused on Mike. “At least you know now why I kept asking you to be a little harder on me with the interrogation training. Haha!”

Anna looked down and played with her fingers. “Anyways, that’s all I have for you. I know these things are pretty simplistic but escaping doesn’t need to be complex. A little creativity and some easy skills can take you a long way. Just know your surroundings and don’t be afraid to use them. A sense of survival is key. Zero and Harry have also asked me to take charge of an ‘avoiding detection’ lesson as well. I’m sure you’re all nice and stealthy but it will be primarily in a civilian sense, or perhaps undercover. Let me know if any of you are interested. ...Dismissed, I guess.”

Anna shrugged and slid down from off the desk. Erik stayed to ask if he could keep the locks to practice and Anna nodded. Gilles thanked her. Mike headed out pretty quickly with Jalal. Sam remained sitting.

“Zero, I wonder if putting together some escape rooms would be good if they really want to be able to experience things and test their skills. Tie them up somewhere in the Arena and get them to figure their way out. Lock some of the doors, have some of the operators play guards.” Anna suggested when it was the two of them. “These guys really didn’t seem so convinced that these situations were all that challenging when in all actuality, you have to be a lot more cautious than we were discussing.”

“Stealth and teamwork are their bread and butter. You are more of an animal with a paw caught in a trap it sounded like from these examples.” Sam looked down. “And you’re right. They have training that you don’t have… but if all those situations actually happened, you’re a tough cookie to crumble, little bird. I also think you’ve been going easy on the operators in the Arena. I want to see you step it up next time, okay?”

“Sure thing, boss.”


	27. Paranoia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna is feeling uneasy at the facility.

**Chapter Twenty-Seven - Paranoia**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

  
**Location:**   
Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

Anna buzzed Mark as soon as Sam left the room.   
  
Click. (Outgoing message.) Click, click, click, click. (Are you available?) Dah, dah, dit, dit, dit, pause, dit, dah. (7A.)   
  
_ Buzz, buzz. _ (Affirmative)  _ Buzz. _ (Hold steady.)

Anna rubbed her upper arms through her hoodie and took some deep breaths before packing up the maps and such. She had to carry them all since Erik took the canvas bag with the locks, chain, and fabric binds. She sat at one of the chairs and waited for Mark to arrive. A few minutes later, he comes up to the door and enters, eyeing her.   
  
“You look… stressed,” Mark narrowed his eyes. “They didn’t go too hard on you did they?”   
  
“No, I think I stunned them a little, actually.” Anna sighed. “I talked them through my escapes, made demonstrations, gave examples of how these few things can be used in a variety of situations, and told them how to practice these types of skills. I… actually showed them my whipping scars. Erik took to the lockpicking right away. Jalal seemed… distant. Mike picked up that you and I were together at New Years so he might approach you about that. Gilles seemed worried about me but did excellently with the mental mapping. And Zero picked up on the fact that I’m going easy on people in the Arena escapes.”   
  
“You’re going  _ easy _ on them?” Mark crossed his arms.   
  
“I know that you guys won’t hurt me here. I know you’re all on my side. Zero said it himself that I am an ‘animal with its paw caught in a trap’ when I’m out in the real world so my survival instinct out there is vastly different than it is here.” Anna looked up to him and stood. “I don’t need to take the same risks or allow injury to myself in order to take advantage of an escape opportunity. I can experiment here.” Anna sounded defeated. “You won’t get the entirety of my escaping until you actually try to kidnap me.”   
  
Mark looked at her silently, calculating.   
  
“Shit, that was a bad thing to suggest. I wouldn’t put it past Zero to actually do that in order to push me… Please don’t tell him I said that...” Anna adjusted the items in her arms. “I’m going back to my room. I would have gone to you later tonight but I wanted to warn you about Mike as soon as possible.”   
  
“Don’t worry about Mike, I know how to handle him.” Mark reassured her. “Let me help carry things and walk you back.”   
  
“I’ll be okay, thank you.” Anna smiled and stretched up to give him a kiss on his face. She took a few steps towards the door before Mark stopped her. He took some of the things from her arms and refused her rejections.   
  
They walked back to her room carrying all of her papers. Neither one of them talked very much until they were in the privacy of her quarters. Anna set her stuff down on the desk and Mark followed suit. She quickly fell to the bed on her back and covered her face.   
  
“Are you okay?” Mark asked her. “You really do seem stressed.”   
  
“I felt foolish talking about such simple things to such experienced people,” Anna said.   
  
“Sometimes a reminder is good,” Mark sat on the edge of the bed. “And the people that you said were there? Most of them do training with new recruits in their own teams. Any kind of stories or perspectives can be used to train up the next group of operatives. You have a unique look on these things. We get so wrapped up in uniformed military training that we often forget to think about other methods. We are trained to only do certain things first, but how you do things is a good backup plan. It can catch enemies off guard. It’s unexpected.”   
  
“I hope none of you ever have to escape like I do,” Anna let her hands fall to her sides.   
  
“We want the same for you,” Mark said and touched her arm. Anna looked over to him but Mark was glancing at her clock. “I have Arena training here soon. I’m sure Mike will find me afterwards to talk. I do appreciate the warning. Take some time for yourself for now and then eat. You haven’t had anything since breakfast. I’ll come back after.”

Mark stood up and kissed her forehead before he left. Anna stayed laying on the bed. She didn’t want to read, didn’t want to move, didn’t want to eat or sleep. Instead, softly, she sang.   
  
_ I won’t just survive _

_ Oh, you will see me thrive _

_ Can’t write my story _

_ I’m beyond the archetype _

_ I won’t just conform _

_ No matter how you shake my core _

_ ‘Cause my roots they run deep, oh _

_ Oh, ye of so little faith _

_ Don’t doubt it, don’t doubt it _

_ Victory is in my veins _

_ I know it, I know it _

_ And I will not negotiate _

_ I’ll fight it, I’ll fight it _

_ I will transform _

_ When, when the fire’s at my feet again _

_ And the vultures all start circling _

_ They’re whispering, "You’re out of time” _

_ But still I rise _

_ This is no mistake, no accident _

_ When you think the final nail is in _

_ Think again _

_ Don’t be surprised _

_ I will still rise _

_ I must stay conscious _

_ Through the madness and chaos _

_ So I call on my angels _

_ They say _

_ Oh, ye of so little faith _

_ Don’t doubt it, don’t doubt it _

_ Victory is in your veins _

_ You know it, you know it _

_ And you will not negotiate _

_ Just fight it, just fight it _

_ And be transformed _

_ ‘Cause when, when the fire’s at my feet again _

_ And the vultures all start circling _

_ They’re whispering, "You’re out of time” _

_ But still I rise _

_ This is no mistake, no accident _

_ When you think the final nail is in _

_ Think again _

_ Don’t be surprised _

_ I will still rise _

_ Don’t doubt it, don’t doubt it _

_ Oh, oh, oh, oh _

_ You know it, you know it _

_ Still rise _

_ Just fight it, just fight it _

_ Don’t be surprised _

_ I will still rise _

Anna laid there a little longer before forcing herself to get up and change. She still wasn’t hungry but she wanted to do a little training before coming back for the evening. She got changed into some structured leggings and a compression long sleeve. She debated on the mask but decided against it. She didn’t want to be challenged today but she wanted to work some of her anxious energy out. She went to the gym and ran for a little while, her mind just racing. She felt her skin prickle. She looked around and she seemed to catch a few people looking at her. She focused on her breathing.  _ It’s been too long since I’ve had a panic attack. I refuse to have one now. Not here. _ She kept running but upped the pace. Her anxiety and paranoia gave her the adrenaline to keep going.   
  
After her 20 minute run, she went over to the punching bag and ran through some of the self defense that she’s been taught during her time here. Out of the corner of her eye, another operator staring at her.  _ Do I have an angry expression or something? _ She kept punching, kicking, and mocking dodges at the bag, trying to keep conscious of her face. Another operator went to walk into the gym, saw her, turned, and left. She stopped the bag from swinging, turned around, and saw some others looking at her again, their eyes leaving her as soon as she turned to them.   
  
Anna sighed, grabbed her belongings, and left to go to the Arena. They had more private training rooms there where she could do her strength training with fewer interruptions. She found an empty one and closed the door behind her. She normally likes to leave them open for air circulation but something was telling her otherwise.

Anna did her reps, her sets, and was breathing heavily by the end of it. She went for longer than she intended but it didn’t feel right to end where she was… she just wanted to do one more exercise, one more set, one more rep, one more breath until she was drained. She sat on the floor in the middle of the room.  _ I need to leave Greece for a while. I’ve been too stagnant here. _   
  
She finally relaxed enough for her to once again grab her belongings and head back to the main building. She was training for at least three hours, maybe longer. She exited the silent Arena and the autumn evening air sent chills up her sweaty spine. She was running her fingers through her hair when she got another chill. This time, not the air. Intuition that something was wrong.  _ What is going on? _   
  
Anna quickened her pace and calmly returned to her room at the facility. She made sure to double check the locks when inside. She took a deep breath.  _ It’s not enough tonight _ . She cleared off her desk and stacked it in front of the door on its side. She used the chair to wedge the closure between the closet door and the main door.  _ No one is getting in. _   
  
Quickly, she got undressed and took the fastest shower possible. She felt better, more awake this time, and got dressed into night clothes - yoga pants, and a loose t-shirt. She turned out the light except for the small desk lamp so she could read while laying down. There was a tap at the door.   
  
Click. (Outgoing message.) Click, click, click, click, click. (Just checking in.)   
  
“Anna, it’s me,” Mark called from outside the door. She sighed and climbed out of bed. She unstacked the desk and chair from the door and cracked it open. Mark was in SAS clothing but it was more casual. He still had his boots on. “May I come in?”   
  
“No,” Anna said bluntly. Mark’s expression changed to worry.   
  
“Are you okay?” He asked, concerned. “People told me you looked like you were panicking when you were at the gym earlier. Did you eat?”   
  
“I’m fine. Why are you here?”   
“I finished training. I told you that I would come by afterwards.”   
“Training is only an hour or two, tops. It’s been three. And you  _ always _ change out of your SAS clothing after training.”   
“Laundry.”   
“You change either way. You carry it back. Why are you lying to me?”   
  


Mark sighed. “I’m not lying. Dominic took my regular clothes as a joke but I need to wash these anyway.”   
  
“I don’t believe you,” Anna stared at him from the small opening she allowed in the door. She waited in an awkward silence but sighed. “Come in, I guess.”   
  
She struggled with the door with the desk in the way. Mark looked confused.   
  
“Are you sure you’re okay?”   
“Things were... weird around here this afternoon. I don’t like it. When feeling like this, I normally take off to a new country but that’s not an option here. Paranoia is definitely kicking in...”   
“Leaving’s always an option. You’re not a prisoner here, Anna. You can leave whenever you want to.”   
“I might do that then. Just for a month or two. Just to feel better.”   
“Okay…”   
  
Mark hugged her and kissed her forehead silently. He got her to step aside and he moved the desk and chair back to their proper placement in the room. Anna sat down on the edge of the bed and yawned.   
  
“Have you eaten?” Mark asked. “You never answered.”   
  
“No, I did the training instead. I felt like running so I figured I would use that anxious energy for something productive.” Anna picked up the book, closed it, and set it on the nightstand. She looked up at Mark who scrunched up his mouth in disapproval at her. He knelt down and coaxed her into bed.

“Whatever happens tonight, don’t aim for my head.” Anna muttered, hoping for the best.   
  
Mark never answered her, but he stayed with her, petting her hair until she slept. He sighed, stood, left through her door and propped it open on the deadbolt. He walked down the hall and then radioed softly.

“She’s expecting us.”


	28. Challenge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna's world is shattered in a moment.

**Chapter Twenty-Eight - Challenge**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Julien “Rook” Nizan

Jalal “Kaid” El Fassi

Maxim “Kapkan” Basuda

Mike “Thatcher” Baker

Erik “Maverick” Thorn

Jordan “Thermite” Trace   
Miles “Castle” Campbell   
Gilles “Montagne” Toure

Timur “Glaz” Glazkov

Tori Tallyo “Gridlock” Fairous

Gustave “Doc” Kateb

Dominic “Bandit” Brunsmeier

Sam “Zero” Fisher

**Location:**

Rainbow Arena Facility, Greece

It was in the early hours of the morning when Anna was jolted awake by a hand clasped over her mouth. Three tall dark figures were in her room and pointing guns at her. She looked between all of them but couldn’t tell who they were. The man with his hand over her mouth pulled her roughly from the bed to the floor and handcuffed her. He stood her up and marched her out the door of her room closely followed by the two others.   
  
Anna’s brain went into overdrive with anxiety and panic.  _ Fuck you, Zero. Fuck you, Mark. _ She cooperated for now, walking with him at the swift pace in which he was moving. She felt exposed with short sleeves on, but nothing that she can do about this now. They led her to the far side of the building and up a couple of floors to a wing that she hasn’t been to before.   
  
She was brought inside, sat down at a table, and she waited.   
  
Ten minutes.   
  
Thirty minutes.   
  
Ninety minutes.   
  
She sat, staring at the wall ahead of her, her frustration and anger building. Finally, someone walked in. Anna glanced up and saw Mike with some paperwork. He set it down on the table and walked around behind her to undo her handcuffs. Anna rubbed her wrists while he sat across from her. She interlocked her fingers and rested them on the table. She forced her shoulders and face to relax.   
  
“You look tired,” He said callously. “You should have had dinner. Shouldn’t have run yourself so hard this evening. Now you have nothing left to fight with. But I’ll tell ya what...”   
  
Mike slid the paperwork across the table. “If you sign this, you can go back to bed. Simple, really.” He held the pen out to her. Anna took the pen and just held it, turning it over in her hands and tapping her foot against the leg of the chair.   
  
“Is this kidnapping simulation full contact?” She asked, turning the pen over once more.   
  
“It can be whatever you want it to be,” Mike said. “We want to know the true you.”   
  
“I’m not sure if you’re all ready for that,” She laughed nervously. “Where do I sign?”   
  
Mike reached over and pointed to a line at the bottom of the page. In a blink, Anna stood and held the pen up, slamming it down into the table, pinning his outstretched sleeve cuff to the wood. She turned her foot to unbalance the lightweight aluminum chair and tipped it into her hands. She brought it up and slammed Mike in the shoulder with it. His sleeve popped loose from the pen which Anna grabbed again. Mike hit the ground and Anna was on him fast, and slammed the pen into the floor beside his head.   
  
“Mercy,” She muttered. “That would have been your carotid.” Anna quickly went through his vest and took his pistol and extra magazines. She looked inside and saw the powder bullets from the Arena. She sighed, calming herself and grabbed his chalk knife while she was at it.   
  
“What’s my goal here, o great one?” She asked, mocking Mike’s confident demeanor.   
  
“Get back to your room,” He said simply.   
  
“Done.” Anna said and slid the magazines in the lower outside pockets of her pants. She went to the door and listened. It was silent.  _ No, wait. _ There was a shift. A footstep. She went back to the table with the damaged pen and quickly signed the first signature that she thought of that wasn’t her own. She snatched up the paperwork, hid the pistol and her hand in her pocket and opened the door.   
  
Outside stood Erik. He had his full gear on and aimed his gun up at her. She pretended to be scared and held the paperwork forward, signature clearly at the bottom. Erik hesitated and it was all she needed. She drew the pistol as he lifted back up his weapon. She dodged to her right, and took two shots as she moved. Erik safely lowered himself to the ground. Both struck his chest, but neither one would have been fatal. His shot splattered on the door where she previously stood. She dropped the paper and walked towards him with the pistol aimed at his head.   
  
“Bang,” She said before aiming to the ground beside his ear and firing. The powder splattered his face. Her expression was angry now. She kept the pistol at her side while Erik remained conscious but laying in place. She exhaled and walked down the hallway that they brought her in from. She stepped as quietly as possible, listening for other operators. She heard some from the floor below, towards the bottom of the stairs ahead of her.   
  
She checked the doors all along the hallway and they were all locked.  _ Shit. _ Anna walked back to Erik and started searching him for anything she could use to pick the locks. Conveniently, he had the lockpicking kit on him, including four of the practice locks. “You really got into this, didn’t you?”   
  
“Just a little,” He laughed. She unzipped the case and took out a couple of instruments. She returned to the doors and got some of them open. She did a quick exploratory run and found one that had a reasonable climb down from the window. She unlocked and slid it open quietly before looking out. There was no one outside that she could hear or see. Tentatively, she climbed out to the ledge outside. She jumped to a lower ledge and landed in her bare feet. She scrunched up her nose at the rough texture but kept moving. She stole a glance in the windows and saw Miles and Jordan keeping watch.  _ How did they not hear the gunshots? Or did they think that Mike was firing intimidation shots to scare me? _ She crouched and walked past the window. Here, she jumped down and caught herself on the next floor’s window sill. Her arms scraped on the way down. No reaction from inside to her figure through the window so she dropped the rest of the way to the grounds below. She landed on her feet but also had to touch her hands to the ground to soften the landing. She looked over her arms and saw the trickle of blood down her forearms.  _ Pain is just pain _ .   
  
Anna paused, listening to the silent still air of the middle of the night. Nothing moved outside. She crept along the building closely and shot out any cameras that she could find. She went in the nearest door to the staff quarters on this side of the building.   
  
Anna stepped quietly and listened at every intersection of the hallways. She heard a metal clink sound around one of them. She peeked and saw Mark walking patrols with Gilles. Anna froze. Mark was in his full SAS gear, and Gilles was fully decked out in his GIGN gear as well. The two operators walked down a hall to the right. Anna stealthily walked down the corridor and hid behind a short desk and waited.   
  
She heard steps again and watched them walk back past her through the desk legs down the hall to the left. She stood and held the gun in her hands. A metal sliding “shink” sound echoed from the hallway. Calmly, she walked towards where the two men crossed by and peeked the corner. They seemed to be aware of her because they were both already facing her direction. Mark had his rifle up, and Gilles had his shield extended. She turned the corner with her hands raised, bloodied forearms exposed, the pistol swinging loosely from her right index finger.   
  
“Drop the gun,” Ordered Gilles. Anna tossed it to the side and kept her hands up. Gilles started walking towards her followed by Mark and she brought her hands to her sides instead. They stopped moving. “Keep your hands up.” Anna just stared at both of them with a displeased look on her face. ‘ _ Who Dares Wins’ right? _   
  
Instead of complying, she sprinted at Gilles who braced behind his shield. Anna drew the knife she took from Mike and jumped at the shield towards the top. Gilles took a step back, and angled the shield to counter her angle. Instead, Anna used it as a flat surface and vaulted over him instead. She flipped around, slicing her side open on a burr on the top edge of the shield, and landed facing him. Swiftly, she brought the practice blade along the back of one of his arms, and behind the knee on his opposite side.   
  
Mark rammed into her and she slammed against the opposite wall. He took a step back and aimed his rifle at her face. “Get on the ground,” He demanded. Anna still had the knife in her hand but hidden behind her wrist. She didn’t comply, waiting for him to either shoot her or for him to approach. She hated him at this moment for breaking her trust and aiming at her head. “I said get on the ground!” He repeated louder. She stared at him through his mask, unable to see his eyes in the dark. He didn’t approach. He went to radio for backup and Anna lunged. She parried his rifle barrel as if it was a punch and took the knife to his ribs. He fell backwards at the impact and she landed on top of him.   
  
Quickly, she got up and ruffled through his vest, grabbing a new pistol, magazines, and stood up. Mark sat up and looked to Gilles who was taking a seat leaning against the wall. Anna held up the pistol to shoot both of them in the chest twice. They were definitely ‘out’ now. She started to walk away.   
  
“Good work! I’ve never seen someone vault over Monty’s shield like that.” Mark called out to her retreating back.   
  
“You won’t see me doing anything for a while,” Anna called back. Mark wanted to stand to clarify her statement but Gilles tutted him. He returned to his spot on the ground and waited in silence for the radio call from Sam.   
  
Anna swept through the more familiar hallways. She would occasionally hear and run into other operators but hid well and took alternate routes.  _ I can get back to my quarters easily through the cafeteria _ . Anna took off completely in the opposite direction and found a quiet room to be able to work. She took the pistol out, stood near a wall, and shot the cinder blocks. The white powder impacted the concrete and splattered everywhere. Including her. It was all over her face and chest. She also took out the knife from Mike and dragged the chalk blade across her chest in a quick manner.   
  
_ Better… I look like I lost a fight, _ she thought and made her way back to the cafeteria. She knew that there would be people there so she didn’t want to take chances. She crept down the hall and peeked the corner.  _ Even better _ . Timur was at one of the entrances and had his rifle up. Anna ditched all her weaponry around the corner and calmed herself.  _ Remember how he flirted… use it. _ She turned the corner towards him and he aimed at her. Anna kept walking towards him and raised her hands in surrender with an embarrassed smile. He kept aiming but faltered.  _ He’s spotted my ‘injuries’. _   
  
“I’m apparently the one that has to tell everyone that it’s over,” Anna said as she approached him. His weapon lowered a little bit. “Jordan got me.”   
  
“Unfortunate,” Timur said, without letting his weapon drop completely. He moved towards her and Anna let him approach and touch her. He brushed off some of the powder from her shoulder. Anna looked down, shamefully. “My bet was that you got to at least me.”   
  
Anna smiled. “Thanks for the faith. You deserve your money… or whatever you bet.” She reached down, grabbed his knife from his vest and held it up to his throat, moving it along gently. His eyes widened, and then softened, and he quietly sat down on the floor shaking his head at himself.   
  
Anna looked over the rifle that he had. It wasn’t his specialty one, but the one that she trained with in the Arena seats. She grabbed a few extra clips and stashed them in her yoga pant pockets. Barefoot, she crept towards the door and saw the other three operators guarding the doors into the cafeteria. They were all facing outwards like Timur was. Quietly, she padded over to the stairs in the centre of the room and climbed up. She went up to the second level balcony and laid down uncomfortably on the floor. She aimed down at Tori ahead of her and waited for her to step back into the doorway. Finally, her torso was visible and Anna took the shot, hitting her in the back between her shoulder blades.   
  
“You're joking, mate.” She knelt down and sat on the ground. Gustave and Dominic turned their attention inwards to the cafeteria and proceeded in to find the shooter. Anna waited until one was visible. Gustave’s helmet peeked out from the edge of the balcony and Anna took the shot, striking his visor. He put his hands up and sat down at a table. Dominic kept on the prowl. He cleared the room and looked up at the stairs. Anna kept looking at the cafeteria but heard his steps up the spiral staircase. Anna adjusted her aim and shot his helmet as he peeked her. He too raised his hand and sat down.   
  
Anna picked the rifle up and headed down the stairs, stepping over Dominic’s ‘body’. She proceeded through the cafeteria but heard Gustave behind her calling her name. She turned to see him aiming his Stim Pistol at her. She stopped, angrily pointed a finger at him, and said “dead men don’t shoot.” She turned and peeked out into the hallways, listening. She heard nothing. Quietly she stepped out with the rifle and listened more closely. She heard the operators in the cafeteria discussing her but she ignored it. She padded down the hallway a little towards her quarters. She finally heard some people talking near there.  _ Julien, Jalal… Maxim? _ She looked at a reflection in a window and saw the three men dressed in black that took her earlier.  _ Damn them. _   
  
Anna backtracked and headed towards her quarters from the opposite direction. She peeked the corner and saw it clear. Silently, she crept down the hallways to her door and peeked in. Sam was sitting at her desk chair, waiting patiently. She was furious at this whole simulation.  _ How dare they attack me like this? _

  
She stepped into her quarters with the rifle pointed at him. He looked up to her and smiled. “Well done, little bird.”   
  
“‘Quill’,” Anna said sharply.   
  
“So you  _ do _ want to join Rainbow. Hah! With your performance here tonight, I think we can consider that.” Sam stood and looked proud. Anna scowled and shot him three times in the chest. Sam took a step back in surprise.   
  
“I do  _ not _ want to join Rainbow. I never have! I was brought here to be interrogated by your operators over a year ago and I stuck around for the feeling of safety. Thinking that these… these…  _ good _ people were finally the ones that I want to be around. That maybe I had friends that I could  _ trust _ . And with one swift moment tonight, you all took that away from me.” Anna lowered the rifle, seething. Sam looked at her clearly not anticipating that response. He was covered in powder now. Julien, Jalal, and Maxim heard the shots and showed up in the doorway.   
  
“I want you to get out of my room while I change and pack. I’m leaving.” Anna stared at him aggressively.   
  
“Anna,” Sam started.   
  
“You have never called me by my name, and you will  _ not  _ start now. You want to be called ‘Zero’? You can call me ‘Quill’. Get out.” Anna was not backing down. Sam raised his hands and held his hands out for the rifle. Anna gave it to him and he left. She turned and locked the door.   
  
Once alone, she went into the bathroom, turned on the shower, sat in the bottom of the stall in her soiled clothes, and cried.


	29. England

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna resurfaces.

**Chapter Twenty-Nine - England**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Grace “Dokkaebi” Nam

**Location:**

Hereford Base, England

North Duffield Area, England

York, England

Mark sat silently on his phone at his bunk in the barracks. He has been looking for Anna since she disappeared from Greece ten months ago. He was messaging Grace about the possibility of tracking Anna through the GPS in the chips but she wasn’t confident about it.   
  
“I would have to update the programming in her chip before I could make that work,” Grace typed out. “I’m sorry. :(“

Mark clicked his screen off in frustration. He pressed in his chip.   
  
Click. (Outgoing Message) Click, click, click, click, click. (Just checking in.)   
  
He waited for 15 minutes in silence to no response.  _ I don’t know what I was expecting _ . He exhausted all of his SAS Intelligence resources when trying to locate Anna. The other operators on Team Rainbow also reached out to their contacts about seeking her out but she has remained evasive to them. Mark couldn’t help but think about her in Afghanistan helplessly begging him for help via a broken chip. His stomach turned again. He hated dividing his time up between so many places but he doesn’t have a choice with his responsibilities. Hereford, York, Cambridge, Greece. He leaned back against the wall just wanting some time off to seek her out.   
  
_ Buzz. _ (Incoming message)  _ Buzz, buzz. _ (All clear).   
  
Mark sat up straight and immediately clicked his chip in response.   
  
Click, click, click, click. (Are you available?)   
  
He waited with baited breath, phone in his hand ready to call in a heartbeat. He didn’t need to though as the Dokkaebi demon face lit up on his screen. He answered.   
  
“Anna?”   
“Hi, I figured I would stop punishing you. I also have some news.”   
“Punishing me for what? It doesn’t matter. I’m just happy to hear your voice. Where are you? Are you okay?”   
Mark could hear her stop walking and sigh. “I’m fine, Mark. I’m in England right now.”   
“Where? I can meet you.”   
“Don’t worry about it. I know you’re at Hereford for a little while longer. I can meet you at your place in York if that’s where you’re going after this?”   
Mark was quiet. “How do you know I’m at Hereford?”   
“You aren’t the only one with sources, Mark.”   
“You’re scaring me, Anna. Where are you?”   
“Close to York. Like I said, I have news.”   
“What is it?”   
“I bought a house.”   
“You what? Where? What is the address?”   
“We’ll discuss when we’re together again. It’s only about a 20 minute drive from your flat. You’re home on Thursday?”   
“Yes.”   
“I will see you Friday morning, then.”   
“Anna, wait-” 

The line went silent. Mark tried to call her back but she didn’t answer.  _ Punishing me? For what? _   
  
\-----

Mark pulled his vehicle into the lot behind his building around lunch on Thursday. He grabbed his military duffel and hauled it upstairs. He unlocked his door and looked at all the papers, maps, trash, and computers he had around. He set up a whole operation in his living room to hunt for Anna internationally. He let his duffel fall from his shoulder and started to clear papers off of surfaces and put them away in his office. He took a good look around and finally saw with clear eyes how messy he allowed this place to get while he was focused. Shamefully, he moved his duffel to his office as well and got to work cleaning.   
  
He grabbed a bin and tossed all the garbage. He moved any dirty dishes to the kitchen.  _ Anna is coming here tomorrow.  _ He got a damp cloth and wiped down the tables, cabinets, and kitchen surfaces. He washed, dried, and put away the dishes.  _ How is she even getting here?  _ Vacuumed the floors, dusted the bookshelf, and organized his belongings. He also scrubbed down the bathrooms and straightened the bedroom as well. He had a lot of laundry to do so he started with the linens.  _ I can’t believe she’s been 20 minutes away from me and I never knew. _ He switched over the loads and started to fold the clean towels.  _ She bought a house without my knowledge? How could she afford it? _ He made the bed with clean sheets, and dumped the hamper of clean clothes there. He sat and started to fold it.  _ I need to see this property and start taking steps to make it as safe and as undetectable as possible for her. _ He put all his neatly folded clothes in his dresser and closed the drawer.   
  
Mark looked at the clock on his nightstand and realized that he’s been cleaning for five hours now. His stomach grumbled, demanding food. He went to the kitchen and prepared a small meal and sat at the table there.  _ This place does look a lot better… _ He ate while making mental notes of what to talk to her about in the morning.  _ I’m just happy she’s safe. _   
  
\-----

Mark had a restless sleep which was unusual for him. He tossed and turned for most of the night which resulted in him being a little groggy in the morning. He got up, woke up a little more in a cool shower, got dressed, and made himself a cup of tea. He was sitting in his kitchen holding his head when a knock sounded at his door. He quickly stood and walked over. He was nervous.  _ Why? _ He smoothed out his shirt a bit and peeked out the lens. There stood Anna. She looked pretty with her short brown hair, natural make up, and a put together outfit. She looked up to the peep hole and he looked into her warm brown eyes. Mark unlocked and opened the door.   
  
“Hi,” Anna said softly and looked up to him. She smiled shyly. Mark got lost in her eyes for a moment before collecting himself and allowing her inside. Anna entered, quickly took her heeled boots off and set her purse down by the entry. She turned back to face Mark. “I imagine you have a lot of questions.”   
  
“I do,” Mark started. “But I forgot them all. Would you like tea?”   
  
Anna blushed a little and accepted. She went and sat down on his couch, running her hand over the cushion where she sat on his lap, kissing him passionately… and also where he was tending to her injuries after the attack. She must have been lost in thought because Mark stood in front of her with two mugs. Anna smiled and accepted hers.  _ He even still has my bug print mug. _ She took a sip and it was just to her liking. She moved a coaster and set it down on the table in front of her. Mark sat beside her and half slouched. They were stuck in a moment of stasis.   
  
Anna sighed. “I’m sorry for disappearing like that. I didn’t mean for it to go on for so long.”   
  
“It’s okay. I’m glad you’re here.” Mark said, matching her somber tone. Anna looked up to him.   
  
“You’re not mad?”   
“Mad? Of course I’m mad, or  _ was _ . I’m just relieved now. We were all looking for you. We contacted all of our informants, called up intelligence agencies trying to pull leads, we did our own research and canvassing. Anna… we were all worried.”   
  
Anna sat quietly staring at the wisps of steam coming off from her tea. Mark sat up and leaned in towards her.   
  
“All I want to do is kiss you, but I don’t know if you want that. I want to carry you to my bed again, but I don’t know how you feel.  _ I’m _ fine. But what’s going on with you? Are you okay?” Mark set his tea down on the table and went to reach for her hand but retracted his and clenched it. Anna noticed this and looked up at him. Her face was neutral.   
  
“I went off on Zero that night at the facility. I shot him three times in the chest because I was so angry. The Rainbow facility was… home to me. My first in over a  _ decade _ . It was the only other place that I felt safe besides here… That… ‘kidnapping’ took all that away in just a few hours. I mourned Greece. I mourned Team Rainbow and the family I thought I had in you all.” Anna tilted her head up, trying to stop the tears welling up in her eyes. She took a deep breath before continuing. “I was so mad for the first week. And then so depressed for the next three. I wanted to go back but I didn’t think I would be welcome. My hand was constantly buzzing from you, and all I wanted was to be in your arms, but I couldn’t stomach it.”   
  
Mark looked down at his hands in his lap. “Anna...”   
  
“It felt like I was betrayed,” She looked over to him again. “Stabbed in the back! I never lied to any of you, ever. And yet you all still hid things from me. Things you didn’t  _ need to _ hide. So I hid from you. It fucking hurts, doesn’t it? I found myself longing to go back but I doubt it’ll feel the same. I felt numb and thoughtless. I avoided attacks as easily as I wrote words. I guess your kidnapping simulation helped by throwing me into panic. I think I averaged about 20 hours of sleep per week for the first couple of months.”   
  
Marked listened with a saddened expression. Anna ran her fingers through her hair as she normally did when trying to redirect.   
  
“I kept trying to find somewhere that felt like home again and all I could think of was England. Was you.” Anna pulled out her phone and drew up a listing for a property just outside of North Duffield. “This is the house that I bought. It’s an isolated old farm house that has had a lot of renovations done. I rent out the farm land itself to the neighbours to use and I have the house to myself. It’s surrounded by trees, it has a lovely garden room, a soaking tub, and I’ve been there for the past month and I’ve seen no one come down that road besides the people that live around there. It’s secluded and secure.”   
  
Mark took her phone and scrolled through the pictures. He paused when he reached a dark space.   
  
“Oh, and there are escape tunnels from a few places inside the house, and a bunker buried in the backyard with secondary and tertiary exits to the forest around the property. I figured that you would appreciate knowing that. World War II era but modernized.” Anna smiled slightly. Mark looked up at her. “I’ve already had a few security companies come in for quotes on their strictest packages and some of them look appealing. I thought you would want to review them before I choose.”

Mark handed her phone back to her and nodded. Anna stood to go to her purse for the security paperwork but Mark grabbed her wrist. She froze, her heart rate climbing. “Please sit…” He said.   
  
Anna stiffly moved back to her spot on the couch. She started to disassociate and decided to take a sip of her cooling tea to ground herself. It worked. She set it back down on the table and looked over to him.   
  
“Are you sure you’re okay?” He asked tenderly.   
  
“I’m not okay,” Anna admitted. “I haven’t been since that night. It was a major breach of trust.”   
  
Mark still held her wrist and Anna didn’t pull away. She couldn’t help but be honest with herself that it felt… good. She really did miss what they had.   
  
“Is it still the truth? Or is it back to being a lie?” Mark asked. Anna thought he was talking about her mental state, but then she remembered about the whole ‘girlfriend’ thing. She couldn’t answer. Things were so complicated and she didn’t know what answer he expected to hear. She looked down and Mark took the hint to let her wrist go. “You know… I didn’t tell Zero about your whole kidnapping idea. He came up with it himself. I actually tried to talk him out of it because of how quickly you regretted suggesting it to me... I don’t ever want to see you hurt, Anna.” Mark picked up his cuppa again to prevent his hands from wandering. “Ever.”   
  
“Is that the truth?” She asked, coldly.   
  
“Yes,” Mark replied.

  
Anna nodded, tears welling up in her eyes, and looked down. Her shoulders started shaking. Mark didn’t even get to take a sip of his tea before he set it back down. He moved closer to Anna and pulled her into a hug, expecting resistance but none came. Anna wrapped her arms around him tightly and cried. Every emotion came flooding out of her into his hoodie and they just sat there in silence. Anna laid heavy against his chest while she wept. Eventually, she pulled back. She reached for her cup of warm tea and took some big mouthfuls. Her mascara was all smeared under her eyes now with some darker streaks down her cheeks.   
  
Mark stood and grabbed a box of tissues and set it down on the table for her. She quickly grabbed one and wiped her eyes. Her makeup was unsalvageable but he didn’t care. He cared only about her as a person. This woman that came into his life after ‘dying’ and made him realize what was important. Anna set her mostly empty cup down now and tossed the tissues in the bin. She stood and straightened her dress and smoothed her hair. “I’m sorry about that. I just…”   
  
“Don’t worry about it,” Mark said. “It seemed like you needed it.”   
  
Anna nodded. They both sat again. She leaned against his shoulder and hugged his arm. The air was heavy between them.   
  
“Are you staying at this house then?” Mark broke the silence, still curious about this property. Anna nodded against his sleeve. “I would like to see it if you would have me some time.”   
  
Anna tensed and Mark felt it. “It’s fully up to you and what you are comfortable with.”   
  
She pursed her lips and looked down. “Actually… Another reason I bought it was because it is a three bedroom… A master bedroom, and…  _ two _ ... offices.”   
  
“...You’ve met someone…” Mark assumed, looking away. He tried to take his arm back, but Anna wouldn’t let go.   
  
“The other office was going to be for… you.” She clarified. Mark looked back and stared at her. “There is one room with a ton of outlets, hook ups of all kinds… The couple that owned this house before me was a programmer and his wife. She was the one that did the farming. They were going to have another child so they needed to move somewhere where they had enough bedrooms and also office space for him.”   
  
Mark’s mouth hung open in surprise. The realization washed over him.   
  
“I mean, I’m not expecting you to move in or anything. You can if you wanted to but I don’t want to pressure you at all… I figured that with being so close to York, you would need a space to yourself if you… spent the night or anything. It’s a big house, and I don’t nee-” Anna was stumbling over her words but was cut off by Mark’s lips kissing hers. Anna melted under the contact. He broke away from her. They looked into each other’s eyes before Anna jumped up and straddled his lap, kissing him deeply. He grabbed her thighs, and she cupped his face. Eventually, she had to come up for air and pressed her forehead against his. “I wanted to say yes before… And I want to say yes now but I didn’t know what you wanted to hear.”   
  
“Yes. Always yes.” Mark pulled her against him and held her tightly. She rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. Her breathing felt more natural, and her muscle tension started to loosen. 


	30. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A tour around Anna's residence.

**Chapter Thirty - Home**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

**Location:**

North Duffield Area, England

Mark followed Anna in his own car and pulled into a long driveway. The old house looked unassuming, charming, and quaint. Both garage doors opened and Anna took the left one. Mark parked on the right. She closed the garage and led him into the house. The door opened into a small mudroom where she took off her shoes and hung up her jacket. She brought her purse into the well lit kitchen and set it on the counter. The house was still mostly empty but already felt inviting. There was a lot of natural stone, wood, and warm colours. The vaulted ceiling showed the architecture of the original structure. She gave him a tour. Off of the kitchen was a small dining area that led into the main part of the house. The entry was just after the dining room and connected to the living room. The living space had a massive stone fireplace, and a rustic stairwell leading upstairs. Off of that, there was a small den that was entirely made of glass. She showed him the master bedroom, and the offices on the second level before taking him to the back garden.   
  
There was a beautiful patio area with a pathway leading to a bonfire pit. The grassy clearing was completely surrounded by trees, shrubs, and nature. He couldn’t see the surrounding farmland at all. She took him by the hand and led him back inside.   
  
“Now that you know the place a little more… where do you think the escape routes are?” Anna asked Mark. He looked around and thought.   
  
“Bedroom would make sense… maybe the kitchen?” He suggested. Anna led him upstairs and showed him the exit in the closet by the ensuite master bathroom. She led him through it, climbing down the ladder and through the narrow concrete tunnel. It led to a heavy, locked vault door. Anna quickly put in the code and led him inside. It was small, about the size of a shipping container but it’s all that was needed. Anna locked the door behind them and stepped in further. She showed him the bunks on the wall, backup power, fresh food stores and kitchenette, washroom, and living space. He was impressed.   
  
Anna led him back into the house through another one of the escape tunnels. On their way, she showed him how to unlock the vault doors from the inside and how to lock them from the outside as well. They walked down the narrow tunnel and ascended the ladder. Out they came from the glass room.   
  
“I think this is my favourite spot in the house.” She told him. “It reminds me of Canada. Lots of trees, natural light… I want to put in a lot of plants here.”   
  
Mark looked over to her excited face and couldn’t help but smile. “Where’s the last tunnel?”   
  
“In the garage,” She pointed. “We should put our shoes on though if you want to see the bunker exits.”   
  
They slipped their runners on and went out to what looked like a steel tool cabinet and opened it. She unlatched the false back to it and let Mark descend the ladder. She followed, closing the cabinet behind them. The tunnels were lit with LEDs every so often. Bright enough to see, but not blinding. The floors have good drainage, and the walls seemed secure. Mark was satisfied. The tunnels forked together just before the vault door. Anna got him to open the vault this time and he locked it behind them. Anna led him through to the far side of the bunker to the stairs outside. The tunnel once again branched out in two different directions. Anna led him down the left hand one and unscrewed the metal hatch, pushing it open. They were nearly 200 meters away from the house in the trees. Outside the hatch was a birdhouse on one of the elms.   
  
“The  _ blue _ birdhouses show where the hatches are. Any other colour is just for decoration... and for the birds of course.” Anna noted. “Why don’t you try and locate the other hatch while I secure this one.”   
  
Mark walked through the trees in the direction that the other stairwell went. It took a moment, but he found the blue birdhouse and started sweeping the ground with the side of his foot. He hit metal. He dug around and found the metal hatch, but couldn’t figure out how to open it. Anna approached, crouched beside him, found the hidden latches around the outside of the frame, and up popped the crank to unlock it. They re-entered the bunker and walked back to the main house via the garage tunnel.   
  
\-----

Anna and Mark spent the next few days at the house looking around. She was excited about buying furniture, and how she wanted to lay everything out. He was excited to see her excited.   
  
She collapsed on the couch beside him. Things were quiet here. No sounds of the city, no close neighbours, nothing. Just them, the crackle of the fireplace, and the tapping of the rain on the glass roof of the garden room. Mark lifted his arm to invite her to cuddle in. She obliged. He set a bottle of beer on the end table beside him and turned to her. She has been more relaxed since he’s been here, he noticed.   
  
Last night, he did spend some time in the office she set aside for him and thought about things. It was similar in size and shape to the one he had now so he could possibly just move it one for one. He caught himself off guard with that thought.  _ Am I actually moving here? _ He questioned himself a lot over the past couple of days. He liked the house. The natural elements, but with elements of sleek modern appliances, cabinets, and fixtures. It was a good marriage of both. The best thing about it was that Anna was here.   
  
He sunk into the couch more, kissed the top of Anna’s head, and felt at ease either way. She had an internet connection already. They could watch a movie but he just enjoyed talking to her for now. She was gone for almost a year and he wanted to catch up. There were a lot of laughs, and philosophical conversations that night. They talked about how the human brain perceives the world and compared his and her thought processes. Anna got up and stretched.   
  
“I’m going to get a glass of wine. Did you want anything?” She asked.   
  
“You… but less clothed,” Mark joked and took another swig of his alcohol.   
  
“I’ll see what I can do,” Anna replied and walked off to the kitchen to pour herself some chardonnay. Mark got excited for a second before he saw her return clothed as she was before. “You look disappointed. Might just have to save it for later.”   
  
“Can’t come soon enough,” Mark muttered before taking another mouthful of his alcohol.   
  
“Oh, you don’t get to sass me in  _ my _ house, mister.” Anna pretended to be offended.   
  
“What if I agree to move in, then?” Mark asked. “Would I be able to sass you more since it would be  _ our _ house?”   
  
“I might permit a larger sass allowance,” Anna smirked and took a sip of her wine.   
  
_ Knock, knock. _   
  
Both Anna and Mark froze. There was someone at the front door and they weren’t expecting anyone. She had already installed sheer curtains in the windows so they only saw a blurry figure peeking in.   
  
Anna started to walk to the door and Mark stood quickly to stop her. He told her to keep back and approached the door instead. He looked through the peephole and saw an older man standing there with an umbrella, conveniently blocking the rest of the view behind him. Mark went to his coat and drew out a pistol.   
  
_ Knock, knock. _ _   
_ _   
_ The knocks were a little stronger this time. Anna kept back a little and Mark went to the door with his gun aimed through the wood at the stranger. He cracked the door.   
  
“Good evening, lad. I am the neighbour, Gary. Gary Milner… Might I be able to speak with Miss Anna?” The man on the other side of the door said. He was a little older, late 60s or so. Mark was hesitant but Anna recognized the voice. She walked up behind Mark and gently touched his shoulder to reassure him.   
  
“Gary! Good evening indeed. I hope you’re well. What can I do for you? Would you like to come in out of the rain?” Anna smiled.   
  
“No, thank you. I do apologize for the intrusion but I will be brief. I just was walking the dog and noticed you had another vehicle in your drive. I just wanted to check in on you since our… ah...  _ conversation _ .” Gary looked at Mark and paused before smiling.   
  
“Everything is alright here, thank you. This is my boyfriend, Mark. He’s in the military so he’ll be able to take care of me when he’s here.” Anna latched onto Mark’s arm and kissed his shoulder.   
  
“Aha! Well met, lad.” He held out his hand to Mark and they shook. “I’m retired police and I live in the next house down the road. Anna has told me about her stalker ex-fiance and I wanted to check in on her and make sure things are alright here. I’m glad to see that she’s in good company... Right then! I shall be off. You two have a lovely night.” Gary waved to them and headed down the drive to his car.   
  
Anna waved goodnight. Mark smiled and waved back to him before closing the door. He turned to her and she let go of his arm. He took the pistol out from the waist of his sweats and returned it to the holster in his jacket. Anna couldn’t help but notice how smoothly he hid it when Gary went to offer the handshake.   
  
“‘Stalker ex-fiance’, huh?”   
“Well, I had to tell him something. He was very interested as to why a solo young woman buys a house in the middle of nowhere. I also have a North American accent so I’m clearly not local. Hiding from a creepy abusive ex keeps him on the lookout for us without asking too many questions.”   
“It’s smart.”   
  


Anna shrugged. She walked back to the couch and took a sip of her wine. She tucked her feet up under her when she sat and took a deep breath.   
  
“It’s a shame that you have to head back so soon.” She said, saddened.   
  
“Well… I know where I am welcomed.” Mark sat with her and stroked her hair. “Who do you want me to tell?”   
  
“What?”   
“Who do you want to know about you living here?”   
“I don’t care.”   
“That’s a terrible answer.”   
“I know you’re stringent when it comes to trusting people… and even more stringent when it comes to sharing sensitive information. I know you’ll tell only the people that need to know.”

“Harry, the SAS boys… Maybe Gilles. He’ll be able to take charge if I’m out with the Regiment. He’s got a good protective nature. Gustave too.”   
“Whatever you think is best, dear. I trust you.”   
  
Mark looked down to her. It was the first time she referred to him as anything other than his name. He stopped petting her head. Anna looked up to him.   
  
“What?”   
“You’re cute.”   
“Good. So are you.”   
  
Mark chuckled. “I have to ask… How are you affording this place? Fraud?”   
  
Anna immediately tensed. She took some sips of her wine, thinking of how to answer. Mark picked up on this right away and confronted her. “Anna. How are you paying for all of this?”   
  
“I’m…” Anna hesitated but knew not to lie. “Working.”   
  
“Working where?”   
“I’m working on a large private collection…”   
“I need names. I’m going to look into them first thing when I get back to base.”   
“Oh, I’m positive that it’s safe for me to work where I do.”   
“How could you be so sure?”   
“Because my employer is the Queen.”   
  
Mark couldn’t answer. He was stunned. Anna saw his face and continued her explanation.   
  
“I previously did some work for the British Museum in London. My skills there were praised and brought to the attention of the Royal Family. I was invited to do some specialty work on a few pieces in the Royal Collection. They were pleased with me and asked the Royal Collection Trust to take me on as a conservator. I worked there for a short while before being kidnapped. I reached out to them immediately after the attack to explain what happened and why I couldn’t return to my duties.” Anna took another sip of wine. “I actually got really close to the Princesses of York while I worked there. I would give them private tours of the collection quite often and it kind of bloomed into friendship.”   
  
“You…” Mark stumbled over his words and leaned back on the couch, stunned.   
  
“At least you know that I am surrounded by excellent security,” Anna inspected her glass of wine before downing the rest of it.   
  
“I mean… I’m very impressed. Working on such a renowned collection, friends with the Princesses…”   
“I was at a charity event with Her Majesty and she praised me directly. I’ve met a number of the Family.”   
  


“The Queen has personally  _ acknowledged _ you. Shit…” Mark took a gulp of his no-longer-abandoned beer.   
  
“What’s worse is that she also requested to see me…” Anna looked over to Mark and held one of his hands. “Apparently I have been on every guest list for many Royal events over the years and have offended the Princesses by not showing up. I have a feeling she wants to give me a ‘lesson’ in courtesy. I’d feel more comfortable if you were there with me.”   
  
“I don’t know if they’ll let me,” Mark said.   
  
“I can try and ask anyways,” Anna sighed. “I don’t know if the rest of the Royal Family knows I’m back or not. I guess we’ll find out.”   
  
“You’ve had a more colourful life than I thought,” Mark pulled her in. “I’m impressed,  _ very _ impressed with what you’ve accomplished.”   
  
“Thanks, love,” Anna cuddled into his chest.   
  
“Did you call me ‘love’?”   
“It slipped out. Sorry.”   
“Nah, I kinda liked it...”   
Anna giggled bashfully and Mark kissed the top of her head before speaking again.   
“... Mainly because I love you.”


	31. Travel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna gets some company on the way to London.

**Chapter Thirty-One - Travel**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

James “Smoke” Porter

Seamus "Sledge" Cowden

**Location:**

North Duffield Area, England

Anna perked up at those three words. “What did you say?”   
  
“I love you,” Mark repeated softly while looking into her eyes. Anna took a deep breath and sat up from the cuddle. He looked concerned. “Too fast?”   
  
“No, I-” Anna’s eyes flashed about the room looking for words. “I’m just… Everything in my body is telling me to run right now. To get away from you so that you don’t get hurt. So that  _ I _ don’t get hurt. This feels dangerous… Don’t get me wrong, I feel elated hearing you say that but… my anxiety… I’m worried how this will make you vulnerable.”   
  
Mark didn’t say anything but instead pulled her back into a hug. Her breathing was shallow and rapid. He listened to the rain and the crackle of the fire. “I think you should reach out to Harry. If not Harry, someone else, Anna. You’ve been through a lot and it’s not shameful to get help with coping.”   
  
“I know I have PTSD, Mark. I know that. The thing is, this abuse and danger is ongoing… it’s not just coping with one event kind of thing…” Anna countered.   
  
“Of course, but all kinds of law enforcement, military, medical professionals, and even therapists all seek out someone to speak to about ongoing traumatic things.” Mark held her tighter. “Every single one of us on Rainbow has cried in that office with Harry... I have.”   
  
Anna buried her face in his chest and said nothing. He kissed the top of her head and sunk into the couch a little more. “I didn’t mean to throw you around emotionally like this by saying it.”   
  
“I know that,” Anna said, muffled by his sweats. “And it’s not like I don’t feel the same way about you because I do. I just… don’t know how to handle being in a relationship with this kind of threat level constantly over my head.”   
  
Mark smirked to himself at the first half of her words. “We’ll figure it out together. I already have plans about how I want to lock this place down. I worked on security systems when I was a teen and I can definitely make custom ones for this place in a few weeks between shifts. I’d love to recruit Miles in on this and get his thoughts on the bunker and how to reinforce some of the structure like your garden room. I want your permission before I ask anyone, though.”   
  
“Miles is a good guy… I would be okay with that. I would be less okay with the other FBI knowing where this is though. Maybe Jack.” Anna moved so she could speak more freely now but looked a little panicked. “I just don’t know how to handle being stationary like this. I think that you should let me know when you are due to be in Greece and I can travel around during that time to draw attention away from the UK. Any reports of me in places like Russia, Africa, even other European countries will keep them guessing.”   
  


“Okay, I agree. It will allow Rainbow to mobilize if you get into any trouble. I’m in Greece in a fortnight so you can start planning now if you wanted to. I can reach out to the other operators to give you a place to stay or for suggestions of places.” Mark started petting her head again.    
  
“I don’t like plans. They’re predictable, and compromisable.” Anna looked up to him. Her head was swimming from all the cortisol and wine. She cuddled in tighter to try and feel less panicked. Maybe it would be a good idea for her to reach out to Harry after all. “I’ll get you to write down Harry’s phone number for me… maybe his email address too.”   
  
Mark nodded and kept stroking her hair. It was soothing and she closed her eyes, soon asleep in his arms.   
  
\-----   
  
It was the following week. Mark was back at Hereford with some evenings in Cambridge at the university, but he’s updated Anna on the security system that he’s designing for the house. She read his messages while packing to go to London to work on the Royal Collection. It sent a warmth through her knowing how seriously he was taking this. She sighed and went over her baggage with a mental checklist. Multiple styles of clothing, toiletries, lockpicks, knife, extra shoes, formal wear in case the Queen wanted to meet with her, wigs, contacts, kevlar vest, hair pin.  _ I think that’s most of it. I’ll only be there for six days. _   
  
She zipped up her bag and carried it downstairs. She was part of the way through the kitchen when a knock sounded on the door. She froze, but a familiar voice sounded out.   
  
“Anna! You haven’t left without us, have you?”

She spun her head to the door and slowly approached. She peeked through the hole and saw James with Seamus. Confused, she unlocked and opened the door.   
  
“Hello lads, I hope you’re well. What are you doing here?” She greeted them and stepped aside to let them in.   
  
“All good, love. We were surprised to hear you moved to somewhere in the UK.” James said with a grin. “Don’t know how you slipped past us.”   
  
“Beautiful home,” Seamus said.   
  
“Thank you, but I wasn’t expecting guests. I’m actually on my way to London.”   
“That’s why we’re here. VIP protection detail.”   
“Oh, for f… That’s really unnecessary. It might actually make things a little more conspicuous, don’t you think?”   
  
“Harry insists. He doesn’t want you disappearing again. SAS permitted it because they want to keep an eye on you, too. You put a lot of people on high alert, you know.” Seamus crossed his arms.   
  
“Yes, and I still managed to avoid detection from an international special forces agency as well as a national one  _ and _ I legally bought a house during that time. I believe I can drive four hours myself.” Anna raised her eyebrows.   
  
“Oh, you can drive that, no problem. You’re just going to taxi us along with yah!” James shot back. Anna looked between the both of them and sighed. She walked past the men and locked the front door.   
  
“Very well, then.” Anna collected her luggage and motioned to the kitchen. “This way to my car.”   
  
“Nah, we’ll be taking ours,” James laughed with a wink. “It’s a little stronger than a civvy car, and the rear windows are more tinted. It’ll be safer and looks discreet.”   
  
“Either way, I need to go to my car to collect some work gear then,” Anna walked away without them to the mudroom. She stepped out and her shadows followed her. She went to her boot and opened it to grab a small duffel, respirator, and a small case of custom tools. She closed it, locked the car, and opened the garage door to let them all out. The two SAS waited for her to go back and lock the mudroom door. James grabbed the handle of her luggage to carry it for her. Seamus was looking around.   
  
“That’s a small respirator. I’ll see if I can get you one of ours! Best to cover the full face, innit?” James laughed. “Wouldn’t be that effective in a gas attack!”   
  
“It’s for work. I don’t want to breathe in chemical fumes or particalized contaminated polyurethane or whatever I’m working on.” Anna shut him down. She walked to their navy vehicle, adjusting her duffel strap as she went.   
  
“Wait, wait. I thought you did painting?”   
“I do  _ conservation _ of paintings. There are a lot of elements involved… Cleaning of the surface with solvents to remove varnish and contaminants, structural repair with various adhesives, retouching of the paint itself using a resin based paint, and even some carpentry. I specialize in the retouching portion of it, I’m sure you understand why. Anyways, we have to be careful. Some of these paintings use toxic metals and such in the paint and in previous conservation efforts.”   
  


“That’s… not what I expected you to do, but that’s brilliant! A lot of chemistry. You know I like chemistry.” James gave a face of approval while unlocking the car. Seamus walked to the passenger side, still looking around. Anna sat in the backseat and set her bags beside her, buckling herself securely. She made note of how heavy the door was. While this looked like a normal car, it was clearly armoured. James put her luggage in the boot alongside their duffels and gear. They had their weapons in the front, and their kevlar vests on under their jackets. She didn’t notice until Seamus adjusted his when he sat and buckled himself in. He reached down and set his rifle between his knees aiming down and put a pistol in a holster under his jacket. He looked even bigger than normal in such a small interior.   
  
“Mark mentioned that you work for the Queen. That’s impressive.” He made some small talk as James closed the boot.   
  
“I have a good relationship with the Royal Family, yes.” Anna replied. “I’ve worked for them a few times now.”   
  


James entered the driver’s seat and adjusted his weapons as well. He turned the car on, buckled himself in, and looked back to Anna. “You ready to go?”   
  
“I would actually like to stop by the neighbour’s,” Anna said. “I want to assure him that I’m fine and that you both are no threats. He’s a bit of a guard dog for me.”   
  
“I don’t like that...” James said. “I think we should skip it.”   
  
“I agree with James.” Seamus shook his head.   
  
“I insist,” Anna replied softly. “Please.”   
  
“Don’t go all doe eyed on me, love,” James sighed. “Bloody hell. Fine. I’ll go up with yah. Where?”   
  
“No need to,” Anna said. “I’ll be quick. He’s likely in the garden anyways. His is the next house over, west of here.” James unhappily pulled out of the driveway and turned west. Seamus eyed him disapprovingly but didn’t say anything. It was just a few minutes down the road and James pulled in. He tucked his pistol in his jacket pocket and stepped out of the car with Anna.   
  
Gary looked up from his book on the side patio and smiled. He closed the novel and stood slowly to greet his guests.   
  
“It seems like it is my turn to stop by uninvited, Gary. I apologize! I just wanted to let you know that I’m having a little work done on the house and there might be some unfamiliar cars around in the next couple of weeks. I also wanted to tell you that I’m carpooling on the way to London. So the house is empty but my vehicle is still there. I didn't want you to worry.”   
  
“Anna, you are always welcome! It’s a bit lonely out here. And thank you for telling me. You know I’ll keep an eye on things while you’re away. When are you due back?” Gary approached, carefully watching the two men with her.   
  
“About a week, but I’ll be travelling for business after that. There is some work in New York for me.” Anna smiled sweetly.   
  
“New York! That’s a sham copy of the real thing right next door, innit?” Gary laughed. “And who might your friend be? I do believe an introduction got missed.”   
  
“James, sir.” He held his hand out to shake Gary’s.   
  
“He’s a  _ coworker _ of Mark’s,” Anna clasped her hands together. “They’re on their way to London and offered to give me a lift.”   
  
“Wonderful. I hate the thought of you travelling alone. Do they know about your ex?”   
“Oh, yes. They’ve actually knocked him down a peg already.”   
“Glad to hear it. You keep her safe now. She’s a fine neighbour and friend.”   
“Thank you, Gary. We’ll head out so you can enjoy your afternoon.”   
  


“Cheers,” James said with a wave. Anna turned and walked back to the car with him and they took their seats again. “What a lovely bloke!” Buckled in, James pulled out to the street and took off towards London. He spoke at length about taking Anna for a tour around London, but she was just daydreaming, and looking out the window.


	32. London

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little more of a look into Anna's legal career choice.

**Chapter Thirty-Two - London**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

James “Smoke” Porter

Seamus "Sledge" Cowden

**Location:**

London, England

“Where’s there a car park around here?” James looked out the window and eyed the signs.   
  
“No need, we can park at the Palace.” Anna directed him to a private entrance. “Will you be let in?” 

“Yah, the Regiment let the security at the Palace know we’re comin’.” Seamus assured her.

They pulled up to the gate. She was sitting behind James so she rolled down the window and offered her security badge out of her duffel. Seamus and James offered their military IDs as well. Security registered them in and told James where to park.   
  
They got out of the vehicle and Seamus stretched. Anna got the boot open and grabbed her belongings. The two men locked their rifles securely hidden in the back but kept their pistols on them. She headed towards the entrance with her badge ready. James and Seamus followed behind her. She took them inside and to the security office. They presented their military IDs again and were questioned briefly before all three of them were let into the offices.   
  
“This area of the palace is isolated from where the Royal Family resides. There are a few layers of security between here and there. And honestly, most of the conservation happens off-site but I prefer to do my retouching in the location where it will be viewed. I can be sure to get everything perfect that way. The Trust made that exception for me.” Anna explained as they travelled down the back halls to the gallery. She scanned her badge and popped open the doors into a small office to the side. She put down her equipment, pulled out her tools, and went through another door into the gallery.   
  
The room was long and well lit, the wooden floors were well polished and cared for. Anna looked around to some of the pieces, trying to spy and guess which one she was due to retouch. Their footsteps went silent behind her. She turned and saw James getting pulled along by Seamus after stopping to take a peek at a painting. She smiled.   
  
Anna led them through the gallery rooms until reaching another office on the interior of the Palace. There, on the worktable, was a large painting with a facing on it. She knew immediately which one it was.   
  
“ _ The Shipbuilder and his Wife _ , a Rembrandt.” She spoke aloud. “Sixteen thirty-three. A classic.” She pulled over a wheeling cart, threw on a smock, grabbed the correct palette, and chose her paints. She organized it on the cart and grabbed the treatment notes. She went to the cabinet and dug through the solvents until she found the combination she needed to remove the facing. She spent some time mixing them with James hovering around her, curious. She eventually started layering it on the paper and softening the adhesive they used to transport the painting back to the Gallery.   
  
Anna used a few instruments to gently peel back the paper coating and discard it. She then used some circular motions with solvent soaked cotton balls to remove the rest of the adhesive from the surface. At this point, she let the remaining solvent dry on the surface and she unlocked the table to tilt it vertically. She inspected the painting from a metre, all the way back to four metres away to get an idea of what stood out, what is distracting, and what work has already been done. She nodded once she had a plan in her mind.

“You two can sit. It’s going to be a long day.”

“Anna, we’re used to standing, it won’t be an issue.”

“Do you mind if I listen to some music?”

“As long as it’s quiet so we can hear what’s going on.”

She shrugged and went to the sink to thoroughly wash her hand and forearms. Her long sleeves were rolled up to her elbows in preparation for her to paint. She pulled out her phone to put on a classical playlist and got to work prepping her paints. She was just choosing a paintbrush when the door to the studio opened. Seamus and James flipped around at the sound and immediately stood at attention.

Anna, confused, stood up from her stool, silenced her music, and walked over. She didn’t need to go far as Queen Rosalyn rounded the corner with some guards. Anna’s breath caught in her throat. She quickly gave a small curtsy in her jeans.

“Good afternoon, Your Majesty.”

“Miss Annaliese. I do have some things to discuss with you. I’m not sure if we should have company.” The Queen turned to Seamus and James.

“Ma’am, these men are both with the Special Air Service, and assisted me during my time with Team Rainbow. I trust them with sensitive information, however, I respect any decision that you make at this time.” Anna clasped her hands in front of her stomach. Her fingers were tense, but she tried to keep her shoulders as relaxed as possible.

“Oh? I see. I hope they have been treating you well?”

“Wonderfully, ma’am. I am always treated well here in the United Kingdom.”

“Is that why you moved here?”

“Ma’am?”

“I do find things out, Miss Annaliese. I am not senile yet.” Queen Rosalyn sighed. “However, I am here to discuss an upcoming event. I formally invite you to attend on behalf of my granddaughters. They would be elated to have you there.”

“Ma’am, that is an incredible honour. I never expected to have a direct invitation like this…” Anna straightened up even more than she was before.

“I hope you know that I’m asking because I know that you won’t say ‘no’ to my face. They have been increasingly agitated in your absence.” The Queen raised her face a little, and Anna lowered hers.

“I sincerely apologize, Your Majesty. I didn’t mean to cause undue stress like that.” Anna said. The Queen waved a hand behind her and the door was opened by one of the guards. In walked the Princesses of York.

“Good afternoon, Your Royal Highnesses.” Anna gave another small curtsy. The older sister, Princess Imogen, approached her and looked her in the eyes. Anna stood tall out of respect. Apparently it didn’t translate since Princess Imogen raised her hand and started hitting Anna on the shoulder.

Anna took a step back and raised her arms to block the strikes, flinching at every swing. “I am really unsure of how to defend myself here!”

Princess Imogen stopped and huffed. “You left three years ago and said that you would return. We have left space for you at so many parties, dances, events! Never a word from you. How dare you leave me like that? I called you a ‘friend’.”

Anna lowered her arms, and stood straight again. The younger sister, Princess Geraldine, stepped forward and hugged Anna without so much as a word. Anna paused and hugged her back. They broke apart, but Princess Geraldine kept her hands on Anna’s shoulders. After a moment, she spoke. “It’s good to see you back, Anna.”

“Thank you, ma’am,” Anna replied, hands clasped in front of her again. Princess Geraldine let go and Princess Imogen hugged Anna. The two of them hugged tightly for some time before letting go.

“I am hosting an event next month. I want you there. No excuses!” Princess Imogen looked serious.

“Ma’am, I hope that you understand that my absence was to protect the Royal family... regardless of my wants.” Anna lowered her gaze. “I wish I could have attended, but I didn’t feel like it would have been safe enough for you.”

Princess Imogen sighed. “Please don’t make me feel guilty for being angry.”

“Absolutely not, ma’am. Emotions are honest and it’s clear that I hurt you. I’m sorry.” Anna took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Princess Imogen seemed to consider her words and nodded.

“I accept,” She said. Anna looked relieved. “It’s a formal ball. I expect you in a gown, all made up. We have extensive security in place, and can add more if that will ensure your attendance. And also, I’m trying to get you paired up with Prince Thomas of Norway. I think he would be a good pull for you!”

“Imogen,” Queen Roslyn cautioned.

“Sorry, grandmother.” Princess Imogen turned to face the Queen, but winked at Anna when she turned back.

“Wonderful,” Anna exclaimed through gritted teeth.

“I will have more information set for you tomorrow then,” Princess Imogen smiled excitedly. She quickly turned to Seamus and James and pointed a finger at them. “None of this leaves this room!” 

“Absolutely not, Your Highness.” Seamus replied. Both of them were still standing at attention. Princess Imogen grinned deviously at Anna and bounced out of the room, followed by her sister. Finally Queen Roslyn gave a quick smile and left with her guards.

Anna sat back down on her stool and put her head in her hands. James burst out laughing. “Yah got ruffed up by a Princess! Hah! I’m tellin’ Mark.” James pulled out his phone but it was snatched by Seamus who just shook his head. Seamus walked over to Anna and touched her lightly on the shoulder.   
  
“I need a drink,” Anna said quietly as she straightened up. Seamus took his hand back. She took a moment to think before switching the music on and started to mix the colours on her palette.   
  
\-----   
  
Anna walked with the two men back to the car at the end of the day. She had a hotel room waiting for her that she was anxious to get back to. James questioned her about the security there and she assured him that all was well given that many Royal event attendees have stayed here, as well as other celebrities. 

“The security is fine!” Anna said, tired. She directed James to the hotel and they went up with her after checking in. They wanted to try and convince her to let them stay there in shifts to keep guard. Anna shook her head.   
  
“This isn’t exactly VIP detail if we leave the VIP,” Seamus explained. “We’re not comfortable being too far from you.”   
  
“Let’s discuss more after we eat,” Anna suggested. “The restaurant downstairs has some private booths and some excellent Italian chefs. I need a bottomless glass of wine and some pasta.”   
  
James and Seamus looked at each other, uncomfortable with this, but Anna was already at the door with her purse. They followed.   
  
\----

They took their seats in the private booth and Anna insisted on ordering food for all three of them. They refused, but the mens’ empty stomachs didn’t let them refuse too hard. She ordered herself a bottle of wine, and some chicken alfredo. The men ordered non-alcoholic drinks, and modest meals. Anna tutted them.   
  
“I would have bought you a full steak dinner if you had wanted one.”   
“Nah, don’t want to spend your money on yah. And I’m not as quick on my feet if the tum’s too full.”   
  
Anna shook her head at James. He really was a chatterbox. She asked them a little more about England and Scotland as she still wasn’t fully familiar with the nuances. They talked a lot about slang and politics over their meals.   
  
_ Buzz. _ (Incoming message.)  _ Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz. _ (Are you available?)   
  


Click, click. (Yes.)   
  
Anna swallowed her mouthful of food when her phone rang. The little demon's face showed up on the screen and she answered it and put it on speakerphone.   
  
“Hello, I’m at dinner with James and Seamus. We’re just wrapping up. Can you tell them that I don’t need them to watch over me as I sleep tonight?”   
“You don’t need to watch over her. I’m on my way to London actually.”   
“You are? Why?”   
“There are some resources I need to grab for my research at Cambridge. I can spend the night to keep watch. I’m not back at Hereford until Monday.”   
  
James whistled quietly. “You two gunna share a bed? Might want to be careful for Princess Imogen.” He laughed and Seamus hit him on the shoulder.   
  
“What? Why is she there?”   
“She’s not here, she got a few good hits on your girlfriend earlier, though. Just pop, pop!”   
“... Are you serious? What happened?”

  
“She was just frustrated and hit my shoulder a few times. It was nothing.” Anna assured him. “When are you getting here?”   
  


“Thirty minutes. Let them stay until I get there and then they can head out.” Mark suggested.   
  
“Sounds good. Will you be hungry?”   
“Yeah, I can eat.”   
“I’ll get the room service menu and you can order something up there.”   
“You don’t need to do that.”   
“I bought them meals, I’m fine to cover one for you as well.”   
“That’s a lot of money, Anna…”   
“The Trust is paying me well, believe me. I don’t need all of it.”   
  


There was silence on the phone, just road noises. Finally, Mark relented. “Alright. I’ll order when I get there.”   
  
“Thank you, see you soon.” The call ended and Anna finished up her meal. The two men escorted her upstairs and waited until Mark arrived.


	33. Invitation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna gets a proper invitation.

**Chapter Thirty-Three - Invitation**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

James “Smoke” Porter

Seamus "Sledge" Cowden

**Location:**

London, England

Mark got to her hotel room and knocked. Seamus answered and Mark greeted his teammate. Anna was still in her jeans and airy long sleeve blouse, discussing an event with James further in the room. He sat beside her on the bed and kissed her cheek. She took a sip of her wine with a shy smile.   
  
“What are we talking about?” Mark asked.   
  
“I have to go to an event at the Palace next month. We need to think about safety precautions and how to make this feasible.” Anna adjusted her sitting position so that Mark would be more part of the conversation.   
  
“Her Majesty asked her directly,” Seamus said. “We were there for it. It was mildly threatening, actually.”   
  
“She… Okay,” Mark’s jaw tensed as he thought.   
  
“I can talk to the Princesses about what kind of event it is, who will be actively guarding, what room, and all of that. That’s really the only way that we can figure this out…” Anna rested her wine glass on her lap. She tended to chew her lip when nervous so she tried to avoid it now. She looked over to Mark. “Oh! Your dinner!”

Anna pointed past James sitting at the desk chair and asked for the menu. James grabbed it from the desk and passed it over to Mark. “Thank you. Order whatever you want. It’s going on my room tab.” Mark looked down at the paper.   
  
“Depending on who is attending, there might be some SAS guards.” Seamus mentioned, returning to the topic at hand. “We can bring this up with our COs and volunteer to be put on duty then. We would be in formal clothes for the event but that’s no issue.”   
  
“I don’t need to be there long, I don’t think. I just need to attend, greet them all, mingle a little, and then excuse myself for feeling tired?” Anna sighed.   
  
“Except, Princess Genny wants yah to chat up Prince Thomas.” James laughed.   
  
“Ugh, please don’t remind me. I need to figure out how to dodge that…” Anna let her head fall backwards. She caught Mark looking confused so she explained. “Princess Imogen was telling me that a Norwegian Prince will be attending and she thinks that he and I would get along just peachy. She doesn’t know about you. I don’t know how you want me to approach this. I can just tell her that I’m not available for dating and hope she gets the idea, but knowing her, she’ll just think that it’s an excuse from me.”   
  
Mark nodded and looked down, pensive. “I don’t think we can really plan past speculation until you get more information about the event. We will talk to the Regiment about getting some of us placed there in case you need a quick escape.”   
  
“That would be good, but also, I might just straight up embarrass myself in front of you all and that  _ wouldn’t _ be good. James would probably never let that go.” Anna shook her head.   
  
“That’s true, I wouldn’t! You’re in the family now. Gotta tease yah somehow.” James grinned. Anna felt strangely comforted at that. “But Mark’s here so Seamus and I will head out. Have a night, you two!”   
  
She stood and set her wine glass down to walk the two men to the door. “I hope you weren’t too bored today.”   
  
“Nah! It was interesting seeing yah so focused. I can see why they keep yah around with the work you did,” Seamus smiled. James gave her a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek before they headed out. 

“Please remember not to tell anyone where the house is without my or Mark’s permission. The fewer the people that know, the better.” Both men nodded as she closed and locked the door securely. Mark never left the bed but tossed the menu the short distance to the desk.   
  
“So what are you having for dinner?” Anna approached him. He stood, stretched, grabbed her, and threw her to the bed. She let out a surprised gasp. Mark laid down beside her and started kissing her neck.   
  
“I didn’t see you on the menu, so…” Mark smirked. Anna laughed quietly and pulled his face up into a kiss. He pulled her in and cuddled her. “Even a few days without you is weird now.”   
  
“I know,” Anna replied, nuzzling her face into his shirt. “How do you want me to approach the Princess about our relationship? I don’t know what to say, or how much I can tell her.”   
  
“Tell her you’re dating a British soldier. Easy enough.” Mark kissed her shoulder again.   
  
“She’ll want to meet you,” Anna said tilting her head to give him better access. Mark lifted his head to look at Anna. “She has a strong personality and likes to know a lot about her friends. I think it’s her way of relating to people… getting them to talk about themselves.”

“Noted.” Mark kissed down Anna’s chin, neck, and onto her chest. “Maybe I’ll try to get on duty that day and corner this  _ Prince _ for a ‘conversation’.” He kept kissing down her stomach to the waist of her jeans before coming back up to her face.   
  
“Please don’t threaten international royalty…” Anna laughed. “I will  _ not _ post bail.”   
  
“It would get me out of the army, and then I can spend all day in bed with you,” Mark brushed her hair off of her cheek.   
  
“You are  _ so _ flirty tonight,” Anna laughed again. “You’re never like this.”   
  
“I’m sometimes like this, but you’re never around for it, unfortunately.”   
“Well… I am tonight.”   
  
\-----   
  
They woke up to Mark’s alarm at 0500. He quickly reached out and turned it off with a groan. Both he and Anna were barely clothed under the sheets. Anna mumbled something and rolled over. Mark cuddled in, spooning her for a short while before getting up. His body is usually awake by this point so he decided to not fight it. He went to shower and dress for the day. He pulled out a laptop and started working at the desk at the side of the room. His research at the uni was still in progress and he could get a little more done in the meantime.   
  
Anna finally got up just after 0700. The sheets slipped down her front, exposing her chest. She quickly grabbed them to cover herself and looked around, disoriented. Mark turned to face her with a smirk. She shook her head at him with a grin. She slid out from the bed and went to shower and get ready for the day. She put on some slacks, a slim fit t-shirt, comfortable shoes, and a blazer with ruched sleeves. She had her short hair clipped back out of her face with minimal makeup on.   
  
“I desperately need tea,” She said when grabbing her bag. “You’re probably starving.” Mark saved his work, locked up the laptop electronically and in his case, and stood up.   
  
“Are we heading out after food?”   
“Likely.”   
  
Mark nodded and quickly opened his duffel to his SAS gear. Anna furrowed her brow, but guessed that he had to be ready wherever he was so she didn’t say anything. He threw on his kevlar vest over his t-shirt and threw a zippered sweatshirt on over that to hide it. He armed himself and threw some headphones around his neck. He packed a few extra things in the laptop bag and gestured to the door. Anna led them down to the breakfast area where they ate their fill. Anna listened while Mark discussed his research but she didn’t understand any of it. He seemed excited so she let him talk.   
  
After food, Anna and him walked over to the Gallery entrance. They both checked in with security, and Mark was questioned just as Seamus and James were yesterday. Anna carried a tea in with her and scanned her badge into the office. She took Mark the same route as the day before but someone was waiting for them at the door.   
  
“Good morning, Your Highness.” Anna greeted Princess Imogen. Mark stood at attention behind Anna.   
  
“I figured you would be early. You’ve always been punctual,” Princess Imogen held up some papers and shook them gently. “I have your proper invitation here.”   
  
“I actually wanted to talk to you about that, ma’am… Did you have any time free today?” Anna stopped in front of her.   
  
“You’re about to cancel on me,” Princess Imogen’s shoulders sagged.   
  
“No, actually.” Anna smiled softly. “I just want some more details to figure out how I  _ can _ attend and have everyone be safe. I really  _ do _ want to go. It’s an honour to attend.”   
  
“I’m free right now,” Princess Imogen perked up again. Anna stepped to the side and held the office door open for her. Mark took the door from Anna and entered last.   
  
“This is another SAS specialist, by the way.” Anna introduced Mark.   
  
“Nice to meet you,” Princess Imogen said kindly as she handed the invitation to Anna. Anna carefully opened the seal and pulled out the cardstock. She read through all the information and it covered a lot of the who, where, what, why, and when questions. “Ask away!”   
  
“So this is a charity event? What is the charity?” Anna asked.   
  
“We are auctioning off some donated art pieces to fund an education program. I figured that your expertise would be appreciated by some of the bidders. You would really shine here. You’re so captivating when you talk about art!” Princess Imogen smiled. “I really think you could catch the eye of Prince Thomas.”   
  
“That was my second note,” Anna set the papers down. “I hope you haven’t mentioned me to him at all yet. I’m not… available for dating.”   
  
“Oh Anna, your marriage to your work can have a man in the middle, don’t you think?”   
“I have a man, actually.”   
“I don’t believe you! No. You couldn’t…? Are you lying to me, Annaliese? Are you serious?”   
“Yes, ma’am. I really am taken.”   
  
Princess Imogen leapt forward and grabbed Anna by the forearms. “You  _ have _ to tell me everything.”   
  
“There’s really not much to tell. I’ve known him for years, he’s a British soldier. Gotten me out of a few tight spots…”   
“You’re with a Tommy! How about that? I need to meet this bloke.”   
“I did tell him you would say that. Unfortunately, ma’am, it may not happen like you want it to.”   
  
“Why is that?” Princess Imogen shifted on her feet. “I can give you a plus one if that’s the only way I’ll meet this mystery man.”   
  
“It’s rather complicated,” Anna rolled her eyes. “Security and all that.”   
  
“Well, that’s done it. I’ve gone back to not believing you, Anna.” Princess Imogen crossed her arms with a smug look. “You’re telling me pure tosh.”   
  
“You not believing it doesn’t make it any less true, ma’am.” Anna said. “I’ll talk with him to see what he wants to do. Thank you for the invitation. I will think it over and come up with a plan to make it there.”   
  
“Oh, cut the ‘ma’am’ shite,” Princess Imogen shook her head. “You know me well enough to use my name.”   
  
“Genny, I’m not lying. I promise. I really just…  _ can’t _ tell you more about him.”   
  
Princess Imogen sighed and looked at her friend. She nodded. “Alright, alright. I haven’t mentioned you to Prince Thomas yet, but I would like for you to at least dance with him at the event. I think it would give a good impression and he’s likely going to be a high bidder.”   
  
“That, I can do. Did you want me to paint a replica of a masterpiece for the charity? Or an original piece?”   
“It’s too late for submissions, but thank you. That’s a kind offer. Maybe when we do another one in the future.”   
“Sounds great. I know another painter that I might be able to recruit in on that for the next one as well. I’ll get in contact with him and ask.”   
“How can I contact  _ you _ , by the way? Your employee file is a little... slim.”   
“I don’t have an email or a phone number, unfortunately.”   
“How do you contact your boyfriend then?”   
“He comes to my house, and we make verbal plans.”   
“You have a house?”   
“Yes.”   
“Where?”   
“Southeast of York.”   
  


“You’re in York! Anna! You should have come to us! I would love to see your house. I’m sure it’s charming. And you have probably filled it with beautiful art already!” Princess Imogen swayed excitedly.   
  
“I’m not sure that’s a wise idea,” Anna clasped her hands shyly. “I bought it specifically because it’s difficult to locate, and it’s rather unassuming.”   
  
Princess Imogen pouted at that, but waved it off. She excused herself to check in on the planning for the event and gave her leave. Anna looked to Mark and sighed.


	34. Gallery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little exploration of Anna and Mark as a couple.

**Chapter Thirty-Four - Gallery**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

James “Smoke” Porter

Seamus "Sledge" Cowden

**Location:**

London, England

Buckingham Palace, England

Anna daubed some paint on the canvas, adjusted the colour, and daubed on more to blend it in.   
  
“So are we going to tell her?” Anna asked Mark sitting on his laptop in the office. She took a couple steps back and analyzed her work thus far.  _ Pretty good, but her face needs a little more yellow. _   
  
“Do we need to?”   
“It would save me a lot of trouble. I’d be dancing around the topic more than I would be dancing with Prince Thomas at the event.”   
“You said she likes to talk.”   
“This is true…”   
  
Anna daubed more paints on the large canvas. She touched the canvas with her fingers and felt the texture in the area she was retouching next.   
  
“Doesn’t touching the painting harm it?” Mark asked her.   
  
“With clean hands and a gentle touch, not really. Excessive touching with oily or soiled hands will. It’s why you’re not allowed to touch them in museums. People are gross creatures. When we clean paintings, we literally use cotton balls and solvents so the paint itself is pretty durable.” Anna explained, daubing on some different paint to the new area. She added on a few more daubs before wheeling back on the stool and looking. She scrunched up her face, added in more blue, and corrected the colour.   
  
“You’re in Greece in a week, yes?”   
“Yes.”   
“I might head to Russia then. See if I can talk Timur into giving me some sniper lessons in exchange for restoration lessons. It sounds like he has some big canvases in his studio so it might be good for him to know. And also to see if he will consider donating to the next charity event... Do you know if he’ll be there?”   
  


Mark looked up, hesitant to let her go to him, but instead, he took out his phone and sent a message to Harry. Anna saw this, and turned back to her retouching. She wheeled over to a large area in the lower right corner. It looks like a patch was put into place.  _ That’s really unfortunate. _   
  
“Harry says that Timur will be in Russia at that time, but as far as he knows, they have training.” Mark looked down at his phone.   
  
“Ahh,” Anna replied, sounding a little disappointed. “It would have been nice to see him. I actually enjoyed shooting you, you know. It was a different kind of focus.”   
  
“Sniping is a lot harder than that usually. I was only a hundred metres away at times. Maybe two. Snipers have to shoot much further than that regularly. They need a good spotter, and a lot of patience.” Mark was typing something while talking.   
  
“I mostly just enjoy learning,” Anna tilted her head as she laid down a base colour. “I would ask you to teach me calculus, but I think that would be too much for either one of us.”   
  
“You were never really good with math. You can see physical patterns, but not numerical connections,” Mark stated.   
  
“I’m on par with  _ normal human beings _ when it comes to math, thank you very much!” Anna laughed. “Just because I’m not a supercomputer like  _ you _ doesn’t mean that I’m bad at something.”   
  
Mark shook his head with a grin and scrolled through from reference material. Anna wheeled herself back to look at the painting again. She relaxed her eyes and got a sense of it as a whole. Her work on the face was nearly invisible, and the finger was back to normal. The large patch towards the bottom still needed a little blending but her colours were spot on.  _ Oh, I forgot about varnish!  _ Anna stood and walked around to the far side of the painting and grabbed the paperwork for it.   
  
She read through the list of the treatments and materials used. She looked up, biting her tongue thoughtfully. She set the paperwork down on her cart and went over to one of the cabinets. She pulled down some dark brown glass jars and read the labels. She picked up two and tapped on their lids, reading an invisible chart in her mind. She mumbled to herself.   
  


“Three, fifteen… twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-six… twenty-nine,” Anna drew the number on the counter with her fingers. “Eight, nine, thirteen? It needs to be fourteen and a half.” She looked over to a confused Mark, biting her lip now. She looked in his eyes and squinted. “I promise I’m actually okay with math! I just need to figure out how to balance the mix... I think two to one should be okay. I might go to two and a half and buff it afterwards.” She tapped on the jars again and moved them to the cart. She returned and put the other jars back into the cabinet, labels side out.

Mark watched her grab a scrap of paper and write some things down, still mumbling to herself. She circled something and set it between the jars on her cart. Mark tilted his head and read the paper. It was the math that she just spoke out loud, but more refined. The total came out to 2.2:1. He smiled.  _ She got close anyways _ . A paper ball landed on his lap from across the room.   
  
“I don’t need you to inspect my math. I’m confident in it.”   
“I wasn’t double checking. I just wanted to see how you reached your answer.”

“Mhm. Sure.”   
  
Anna laughed. She looked at the painting and went to work on the lower corner again. Two hours later, it was ready for a varnish. She dug her respirator out of her duffel and hung it around her neck. She went to a cabinet and pulled out a spare in a sealed container and handed it to Mark. He furrowed his brow and refused it.   
  
“I brought mine.” He reached into his laptop bag and pulled out his full face respirator mask and slid it on and adjusted the fit of it. Anna put the container away and tightened her mask as well. Mark watched her adjust it to make sure she did it correctly.  _ It will be secure for what she is doing. But that wouldn’t hold in a gas attack… _ Mark reminded himself to get her a full face version for better protection.   
  
Anna put on some goggles and mixed the varnish by weight in a container. She then put it into an air sprayer and turned on the compressor. She walked over to where Mark was and drew closed a clear curtain between them to protect him from the droplets. She moved the painting from a vertical work surface to a horizontal one and stood on a stepstool beside the table. She had one last look at it before she started varnishing it in smooth motions back and forth. She did several layers of this until she was happy with the result.   
  
She disengaged the compressor and soaked the nozzle in a bucket. To inspect the finish, she turned on a studio light and got low, eyes level to the surface of the painting. Her line of sight scanned for any fluffs, bumps, or any other imperfections. She pulled up a single fibre from the surface but approved it over all. She retrieved the treatments page from her cart and checked off the materials she used and noted which solvents would be best to remove it if necessary. She signed the bottom of the page and returned it to the table surface.   
  
“This needs to dry,” Anna said through the respirator. “Do you want to take a walk through the Gallery?”   
  
Mark shrugged and saved his work. He locked up the computer, put it away in his bag, and stretched. Anna stepped past the clear curtain, took off her respirator, and stored it in a sealed container. Her face scrunched up from the smell and she left the small room quickly. Mark joined her outside the room before taking his mask off. “Usually you leave the contaminated area before removing your respirator.”   
  
“It just smells awful in my opinion, and high exposure can result in issues, but small amounts are more or less harmless.” Anna took off her smock and hung it on the office door handle. Mark carried his mask with him while Anna talked about her favourite paintings on display: A laughing Bravo with a Bass Viol and a Glass (1625), “He looks like a good conversation!”; Birds and a Spaniel in a Garden (1660-95), “The dog’s face makes me laugh every time, and I love painting feathers!”   
  
“Oh, I wish I could show you the portrait of Queen Alexandra! It’s an excellent example of how to translate different fabrics in paint. She is wearing a white dress with a sheen, but also has this fluffy chiffon around her shoulders. She looks rather striking. François Flameng did a wonderful job with her.” Anna smiled. “Her portrait is elsewhere in the Palace.”   
  
Anna concluded her tour, and bit her lip. “Sorry, I went into a little too much detail on some of them. I hope I didn’t bore you.”   
  
“No, I find history interesting. Art is a good way of capturing it in a time that they didn’t have many other means to.”   
“Well, the printing press was widely used by the mid 1400s so texts were available… if you could read that is.”   
“Yeah, that was the caveat.”   
  
\-----

The rest of her time in London was relatively uneventful. She worked on a few more paintings doing retouching under the watchful eyes of James and Seamus. She was also asked by Princess Imogen to preview the paintings due to be auctioned in a few weeks. She happily scanned them and recognized a few. She gave her approval, took down names, dates, and artist names so she could do some research.   
  
James fulfilled his promise by taking her around London a little. She enjoyed it but mostly wanted a little quiet time to herself. Mark only stayed the one night before having to return to the uni. She was exhausted from being around people so much the last week.  _ I cannot wait to have some time alone in Russia before I meet up with Timur. Maybe I’ll go to the Hermitage! I could do some work there and get a little extra pay. _

  
Anna packed her luggage and met the two men in the lobby for breakfast.   
  
“So we’re takin’ yah where?”   
“Heathrow.”   
“And where is Heathrow takin’ yah?”   
“That’s not for you to worry about. And I don’t even know to be honest…”   
  
Seamus looked at her disapprovingly. “Yah have to tell us, lass.”   
  
“I really don’t,” Anna replied, filling her plate with buffet food. She took a seat at a four person table and started eating. James sat across from her with a plate of his own. Seamus grabbed a croissant and a coffee and sat.   
  
“I don’t think this jumpin’ around is going to do yah any good,” Seamus said. “I’m worried about’cha.”   
  
“Many people are, and yet, I’m fine.” Anna blotted her mouth with a napkin. “I’ve done this many times. Plans are too predictable, too trackable.”   
  
Seamus sighed and ate his pastry.   
  
“I do have a country in mind, and there are Rainbow operators there, but I just don’t know the route I’ll take. Might be a dozen flights and a world tour. Who knows!” Anna smiled.   
  
“What country?” James asked, a bit of sausage on his fork.   
  
“Don’t you worry about that,” Anna pointed her fork at him playfully. “Only a few people are aware. The ops in that country don’t even know I’m coming until I land.”   
  
They wrapped up their meal and Anna got into the armoured car with them. Her bags were securely packed in the trunk. She had removed the kevlar vest and knife from her luggage and the men were going to drive them back to Hereford so that Mark could store them for her. He needed to pack to go to Greece, so he would be in the area to be able to drop it off at her house. Anna was assuming that Mark would talk to Miles in Greece about the bunker and invite him over.   
  
The drive over to the airport was slow with London traffic, but she didn’t mind. She had a few things to grab from a locker inside the airport itself, but otherwise, she was ready to board a flight going anywhere. James pulled up to the drop off zone and parked. All three of them got out and Anna grabbed her luggage and carry-on from the boot. She gave them both hugs, thanked them for everything, and headed inside.    
  
Anna looked up at the departures board. The next flight she could maybe catch was Stockholm.  _ I guess I’m off to Sweden! _


	35. Russia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna meets up with another Rainbow op and trades lesson for lesson.

**Chapter Thirty-Five - Russia**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Harry “Six” Pandey   
Timur “Glaz” Glazkov

**Location:**

St. Petersburg, Russia

Moscow, Russia

Anna’s flight into St. Petersburg touched down in the morning. She was on planes for the last nearly 24 hours and was exhausted, but excited to finally be where she was going. Her hotel wasn’t ready for her yet so she debated sleeping at the airport but decided that it wasn’t the best idea. She would go to the Hermitage and say hello and offer her skills to the head conservationist.   
  
She went to the car rental in the airport and handed over her paperwork. Quickly, she got her keys and started to drive towards the city core. She had pulled off the side of the road for a moment to put on a wig, contacts, and to change her jacket out. Soon after that, she pulled up to the massive museum and found a quick place to park. She locked the car and walked inside with her purse. The poor employee at the desk could barely speak English so it was a struggle but another employee stopped to help translate. Anna told them that she would like to talk with one of the curators, and gave her name. The employee looked at her dubiously but went into an office and came out a few minutes later with a very excited looking man in a suit.   
  
“Annaliese! Welcome!” Michail greeted her with a kiss on each of her cheeks.   
  
“Hello!” Anna smiled. “I had a few hours to spare so I wanted to stop in. It’s been a while!”   
  
“It always good to have you here, Золотце! Let us walk!” Michail smiled back at her and gestured to a side door. “We have new paintings I want you to look!”   
  
“Oh delightful!” Anna followed him as he babbled on about the art, and how happy he was that she was there. How much he honoured…  _ Blah, blah, blah. Why did it have to be Michail? Why could it not be Dimitri? _ The paintings were leaning up against the wall, secured by a footboard. Anna’s eyes lit up at the colours.   
  
“Beautiful!” She exclaimed, setting down her bag and approaching the art. Michail beamed.   
  
“They are going display in three weeks. We need to prepare them. Will you help? I pay you.” Michail offered.   
  
“Oh, I would love to, but I’ll be training someone to do conservation work in Moscow soon and can’t stay,” Anna buttered him up. “But I guess a few days wouldn’t hurt! I could use the money.”   
  
Michail smiled wider. “Your talents are always wanted here, Золотце! When you want to start? What paintings you want?”   
  
“I’ll take the one that needs the most retouching,” Anna clasped her hands in front of her. “And I can come in tomorrow morning?”   
  
“Perfect!” Michail showed her a few that needed some extra care and Anna chose two that were vastly different to the ones she worked on at the Palace. These were vibrant, creative, one was abstract.   
  
“Do you mind if I take photos for the man I am training?”   
“Yes, please take photo!”   
“Thank you, Mika.”

\-----

Anna spent four days in St. Petersburg working on the two paintings. She was pleased with her result, as was Michail who paid her 200,000 RUB.  _ Easy 2200 euro! _ Her poor wig was looking a little rough after all the resins and varnish that she had to toss it. Donning a new wig, she returned her vehicle to the car rental place and paid for a train ticket to Moscow instead. This way, she could look up the paintings for the charity event in England to be able to talk about them to high ranking attendees. She pulled out her written list and typed up notes on her phone. There was a man eyeing her from across the train aisle but she ignored him.   
  
In a moment, he stood up, took the empty seat beside Anna and talked to her softly in Russian while petting her deep brown wavy wig. “Над чем ты работаешь, дорогая? Я хочу, чтобы ты позаботился обо мне сейчас. Ты так прекрасен…”   
  
Anna furrowed her brow and looked over to him. “I... don’t speak Russian…”   
  
The man stumbled over his words, and went back to his seat, looking embarrassed. Anna blinked a few times before shaking off her confusion, and messaged Harry.

  
It’s Anna… I’m on a train in Russia. Do you have Glaz’s number?

_ Anna! Mark stopped in and said that you found him. _

_ I’m happy to hear that. :) _

_ I was hoping to talk to you in person soon. Are you able to come to Greece? _

I’m not comfortable with that yet… but maybe a call.

Undecided.

Can you help me get in contact with Glaz? I need to talk to him about a painting…

  
_ I would be happy to have a call with you… Can I reach you at this number? _

  
No. Pre-paid. Best to reach me thru Mark…

_ I will do that. _   
  
Harry went on to pass along Timur’s number with a little hesitation, wanting to give him advanced notice first but Anna talked him out of it. She thanked Harry for his time and pulled up her note app again. She was only an hour out from Moscow now and she had another three paintings to research.   
  
\-----   
  
Moscow was busier than she remembered, but it wasn’t a terrible commute. From experience, she knew there were a few particular places that the Russian soldiers liked to hang out. She looked at the first one and scoped out the faces from the outside.  _ Nothing _ . It took her fifteen minutes to reach the second place and she eyed the faces once again. Until she spotted a blue eyed man with a scar playing cards with some others in camouflage jackets.   
  
She pulled out her phone and dialled Timur’s phone number. It rang and she watched him check his phone and silence the call. She grinned, knowing that he’s trying to focus.  _ Such a gambler. _ She called his number again, and once again, he didn’t answer. He looked back at his hand of cards. She called him a third time a minute later and he answered.   
  
“Кто бы это ни был, я занят…” He spat into the receiver.   
  
“The man across from you has the three of spades. That’s all I can make out from here.” Anna replied.   
  
“Anna!?” She saw him stand up from the table. The other men were harassing him for disturbing the game. “Where are you?”   
  
“Don’t show your hand now, the man to your right is trying to see your cards.” Anna grinned to herself, loving this. Timur looked down to the man and smacked him. The others laughed at the man getting caught. Timur threw his hand down on the table, pocketed his remaining chips, and started putting his jacket on. The men at the table threw up their hands, and Timur spoke to them in Russian but Anna didn’t catch it. “You didn’t have to leave, aww.”   
  
“Tell me where you are. How do you see me?” Timur walked out the door and looked up and down the street, looking at people and faces. Anna was across the street but her wavy brown wig obscured her face a little. Her makeup also changed the shape of her features.   
  
“You really can’t spot me? How much have you had to drink?” Anna teased. “Details, details…”   
  
“Tell me where you are!” Timur started to sound a little panicked. Anna sighed and turned to face him fully. He glanced at her and had to do a double-take. She waved her fingers and hung up on the call. Timur waited for a car to pass and ran across the street. He stared at her in her face, gave her a tight hug, and held her for a moment. “Please, don’t disappear again. We were all looking for you. Does Mark know you are okay?”   
  
Anna hugged Timur back and noticed that he did smell mildly alcoholic. She pulled away. He sighed. “I came to Russia to see you, actually. There’s a lot that has happened and I would like to ask a favor.”   
  
“Anything,” Timur looked into her eyes and shifted his jaw in thought.   
  
“Is your painting studio here in Moscow?”   
“Just outside the city. Why?”   
“I was hoping that you would teach me more shooting. In exchange, I can show you some of my conservation techniques for your canvases. I would also like to buy one of your paintings if you sell them.”   
  
Timur shook his head, astounded. “You came all the way to Moscow to buy a painting? That does not make sense. What is going on?”   
  
“I’m fine, Mark’s fine. Harry knows I’m here. I know this is sudden, but I needed to get away from England for a little while. Everyone seems to think that I should keep around Rainbow ops so I figured that you would appreciate being the first person I go to… aside from Mark, of course.” Anna looked down and shuffled a little, awkwardly.   
  
“I am happy to see you, Anna.” Timur adjusted his hat and jacket and eyed her luggage beside her. “I am. But I have Spetsnaz training tomorrow. Where are you staying?”   
  
“I haven’t decided. There are a lot of hotels around and I was hoping to find one close to your place.” Anna shrugged.   
  
“Just stay with me,” Timur suggested. “Free, and easy.”   
  
“I don’t want to intrude.”   
“Not intruding. Never. Let’s get you inside. Somewhere safe.”   
  
Timur led her to a nearby metro stop where they hopped on a train. Anna laughed at how she forgot how big the metro network was here. Timur told her how they expanded a few of the lines just recently and Anna shook her head. He smiled.   
  
After many stations, and a short walk, Timur welcomed Anna to his studio and apartment. The entry went right into an open area. In the main living space, there were canvases of all sizes stacked carefully, a shelf with painting supplies, and a large half finished painting on a large easel. Straight forward was a small kitchen area; to her left, a couch, table, and TV; past that were two doors. She imagined those were the bathroom and bedroom.   
  
“I would have tidied up if I had known you were coming here,” Timur sounded a little saddened.   
  
“It’s great,” Anna hung up her jacket and purse on the hooks and moved her luggage out of the doorway. She slipped her shoes off and turned to Timur, bashful but excited. “May I go look at your paintings?”   
  
“Of course,” Timur replied. Anna smiled wide and approached the in-progress painting on the easel. The colours popped and contrasted beautifully. The sky and clouds had nearly every colour showing, and it was reflected on the water below that. The buildings in the distance were glistening. The foreground was still mostly empty. Anna’s expert eyes scanned the painted, felt the bare canvas, and absorbed everything. She turned to Timur with a grin.   
  
“It’s beautiful.”   
“You think so?”   
“Definitely. I tend to work on portraits so there are a lot of dark colours... but this? This is just so warm. It’s soothing to look at.”   
  


Timur ran his hand through his hair, flattered.   
  
“I’m serious! I love it. Do you have any complete ones? I’d love to see what your final product looks like.”   
“Behind here.”   
  
Anna helped Timur pull out some canvases that he was storing vertically between the shelf and the wall. He had a large stiff card between each one that Anna praised him for. She admired the few that they got out. She turned to the kitchen and quickly washed her hands, drying them thoroughly.   
  
“Oil, acrylic, or something else?”   
“Oils.”

“Are they dry?”

“Yes.”

“Varnish?”   
“No.”   
  


She nodded and started running her fingers over the surface of the paintings. She noted his brush strokes, flicks, and pauses. He watched her inspect the workmanship while leaning on the back of his couch. She noticed this and laughed.   
  
“Like writing, painters have a specific way that they use their brushes. I can tell that you favour bright brushes over flat brushes, and you tend to use larger rounds, even for small details. You use a heavy hand when stroking to the right which makes sense as you are right handed. Anything softer like the mist, here, you stroke to the left. For thin lines, like the rope on the ship on this one, you meet in the middle instead of taking the line completely from one direction.” Anna turned back to him. “You keep your studio cooler, judging on the ridges. The paint was viscous when you applied it. No palette knife in sight. Am I right?”   
  
“Ух ты,” Timur laughed. Anna tilted her head. “You’re crazy. In good way. That’s… impressive.”   
  
“I’m sad that you don’t varnish them, though.”

“I don’t want to ruin them…”   
“You won’t. I’ll show you.”


	36. Lineage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna is struck in the gut by her own unexpected painting topic.

**Chapter Thirty-Six - Lineage**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Timur “Glaz” Glazkov

**Location:**

Moscow, Russia

Anna awoke the next morning as Timur was making himself a coffee. She was curled up under a blanket on his couch.   
  
“Sorry,” He said quietly. Anna shook her head, yawned, and sat up. They worked late into the night as she discussed various varnish types, and which ones are best to use with which paints. “I have to leave, but feel free to do some painting while I’m away, or anything you’d like. I moved the acrylics out and empty canvas. Try to stay in my apartment. I don’t want you getting taken or disappearing. I put some clean towels in the bathroom for you to shower when you’re ready. Sleep more if you want.”   
  
“Thank you,” Anna gave a tired smile and rolled over on the couch.  _ This is the comfiest sofa I’ve ever laid on. _ She was soon fast asleep again.

An hour later, she finally woke and noticed that the apartment was cool, not cold, but cool. She smiled at her correct guess from the night prior. She got up, stretched, and went to take a shower. It helped to wake her and she felt refreshed after the sleep. The week leading up to this was a lot of travel and not a lot of downtime so she appreciated the few extra hours of rest.

_ He said that he left me canvases? _ She walked over to the studio area and saw a box of tubes with acrylic paints, and a few small to medium sized canvases leaning up against the shelf. He also set up a small easel for her, and had brushes clean and ready. Anna smiled and recalled their conversation last night. She lamented that she never really gets to do her own painting anymore, but wants to. She also expressed her impatience when it came to oils. Timur clearly took it all to heart.

Anna walked over to the kitchen and made herself a small breakfast. She washed the dishes after eating, and made herself a cup of tea. She brought it over to the easel and set it down on the tray alongside the brushes. She retrieved her headphones from her carryon and turned on a slow, moody playlist she could sing to.

She stared at the canvas. It stared back. A few songs played through before she picked up the palette. She put down some colours and prepped the canvas surface with white. She started with blues for a sky.  _ Okay, I guess this is a landscape. _ She blended in a few blues for depth and made it paler by the horizon. She added in some clouds… fluffy and pale. She highlighted them with ambers, lavenders, and grey.  _ What is under this sky? _ Anna laid down some greens for the ground. She picked up some ochre on a thin brush and added in some tree trunks. They were crooked and lively. She added in some shades of greens and blues for the leaves.

Anna paused. She finally knew what her hand was painting. Her heart ached. She painted in some low shrubs around the edges, creating a clearing, and added in purple blooms to the trees in the back.  _ Lilacs. I can smell them even now. _ She added in some daubs of paint in the grass to add in texture and colour. To the right, she painted in a bench. The sides were ornate iron, and the boards were stained purple. She added in a few longer blades of grass here and there and sighed.

_ Do I paint her in? _

_ I have to. _

Anna finished her third cup of tea and had to take a break. She stood, stretched, went to the bathroom, ate, and prepared more tea. The canvas and the person were haunting her with every action she did to procrastinate. Eventually, she worked up the courage to grab the brush again. It was difficult but she shaped out the woman sitting on the bench. Her legs, her rubber boots, the blush pink dress, her auburn hair and sun hat. The woman developed a gentle gaze and innocent smile as she looked down to the wildflowers in the grass.

Anna sniffled. She didn’t realize she was crying.  _ Maybe this is why I don’t paint anymore… _

Anna gave the painting some time to dry as she wiped her tears. She took a breath and prepped some very thin paints on the palette. She wetted a broad brush and made some downward strokes over the background and midground. The sheer sun beams made the painting even more moody. Anna sang quietly to herself while fanning the surface of the canvas. She revisited the greens, and ochre, and added in some more lilac trees in the foreground to close off the clearing. She was added in some detail to the bark when the door unlocked.

Anna turned around to Timur walking in. He looked tired. His blue eyes travelled up to her and he smiled softly. She took off her headphones and paused her music.

“How was training?” Anna asked.

“Long,” Timur shook his head. “I’m going to shower and change.”

Anna nodded and turned back to the canvas. She didn’t have too much more to go but it’s been hours. I guess that’s why she didn’t mind acrylics…  _ They don’t dry out on me with how fast I paint. Timur’s paintings take months because he’s always out so oils are perfect. _ She picked up more of the faded brown and added more to the foreground. The shower started to run and she stood back from the painting.  _ Uncanny _ .

Anna sighed deeply and went to wash the brushes. There was more that she could do to correct a few things, but it was a solid painting for only a day’s work. She had only wished that the subject was different.

The shower turned off, and she heard Timur dry off and open the door. Swiftly, his bedroom door closed. She dried the brushes and returned them to the jar he had them in. She was grabbing the palette when he walked out of his room, pulling down a shirt. She noticed how bruised his ribs were looking. She set the palette down and walked over to him, and pulled his shirt up.

“Anna, what are you…?”

“Your ribs…”

She gently ran her cold fingers over his skin, giving him goosebumps. She went to his freezer and found an ice pack. She wrapped it in a kitchen towel and ordered him to the couch and to ice it. He laughed gently and followed her direction.

“I won’t be able to cook anything if I’m not allowed up.”

“Then I will pay for delivery. Whatever you want. Or I can cook.”

Timur scratched his beard and groaned. “Delivery does sound appealing.”

“You order, I pay.” Anna grabbed her wallet and tossed down 4,000 RUB. “Anything you want. I owe you for the accommodations.”

“That would be an expensive meal,” Timur picked up the cash and went to hand it back to her. “Don’t worry about paying.”

Anna stared him down. He waved the money back at her, insisting. Anna pulled out the other 196,000 RUB from her wallet. Timur’s eyes went wide and he put the money in his hand back on the table, surrendering.

“It’s on me,” Anna laughed, putting the rest of the money away. “That’s final.”

“Where did you get all that from?”

“The Hermitage paid me for working on a couple of paintings. It’s a pretty good rate. I think Michail was also flirting a little bit when giving me the money.”

“You shouldn’t be walking around with that much in your bag.”

“I have only been walking around in the apartment or out with you. By the way, did you want me to buy you any varnish for your paintings?”

“No. I saw you painted, though.”

Anna’s face dropped.

“I showed you my paintings… I would like to see yours.”

Anna put her wallet back in her purse and collected the canvas she worked on. She took it over to Timur on the couch and sat beside him. He leaned in closer and looked at the colours. They were rich and lush. The scene was quiet, peaceful. He smiled.

“There are so many details painted in with so little strokes. I feel like I walked in on a private moment.” His blue eyes sparkled at her as he looked up. Anna flushed and explained.

“This is my earliest memory. It’s… my mother in our backyard. She loved lilacs and put a little bench out by the lilac trees so she could sing. She was my biggest supporter when I was younger.” Anna spoke quietly.

“What does she think of where you are now?” Timur asked.

“She doesn’t,” Anna continued with a sigh. “She thinks I’m dead.” Timur looked down at her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him, and closed her eyes. The moment was a heavy one.   
  
“I think she would be proud,” Timur consoled her, but it didn’t help. Anna’s eyes welled up in tears and she wiped them away.   
  
“There’s nothing more that I want than to see my family again…” Anna said.    
“They gave up so much for me, for my success… and I abandoned them.”   
  
“Why did you leave them in the first place?”   
“I was getting kidnapped so often when I was younger… There was one where they threatened my family. They showed me live footage from our security cameras of them having our house surrounded. They said that they would all back off if I went with them. At that point, I knew my family would die if I kept going to visit them. I faked my death in Argentina, and went on the run. As far as I know, my family was threatened a few more times after that, but it stopped.”   
“I’m so sorry…”   
“I think the weirdest part about all of this, is leaving flowers at my own grave in Canada. I’ve always hoped that my mom would find me there but she never has. But I have always found fresh flowers there when I arrive… Lilacs or roses.”   
  
Timur nodded and looked at the painting again. The woman was striking. He could see the resemblance to Anna. “I see where you got your beauty from.”   
  
Anna sat up straight and sighed. “Thank you. She was beautiful… especially so in the morning sun when all of her features lit up.”   
  
They sat in silence for a moment before Timur stood up putting the ice pack on the table. Holding his ribs, he walked to the kitchen, and grabbed a take out menu from a drawer. He called up the restaurant and placed an order in Russian. Anna waited for him on the couch. He got off the phone with a laugh. He opened some cupboards and grabbed some glasses. Out of the freezer, he pulled a bottle of vodka and poured a little for each of them and brought it all to the couch. He handed one to Anna and downed his own. He set the empty glass on the table beside the bottle and leaned back into the cushions.   
  
“Who did you call?”   
“I ordered my favourite pizza. They cook it in a wood stove. So good.”   
  
Anna downed her vodka in a single go and swallowed. She scrunched up her nose and exhaled.   
  
“I didn’t know if you were going to. I didn’t pour myself a second shot in case I would need to drink yours.”   
“I don’t normally take it straight. Usually with juice. But it’s been a long time since I’ve had any strong alcohol at all, honestly. Sometimes a little wine. I don’t like getting drunk in case I need to run.”

Timur nodded, understanding. He stood up and grabbed the bottle of vodka and took it to the kitchen. He whipped up some cocktails with coffee liqueur, vodka, and cream instead. He brought them back to the couch and handed her one. She took a sip and smiled. "It’s delicious!"

Timur seemed pleased. Anna was happy that she could drink a little slower this way. Timur set his glass down with a grin. "Do you play poker?"

"I, in fact, do… but I'm not good at bluffing." Anna laughed. Timur grinned and took out a deck of cards from the side table and started shuffling. He moved to the ground on the other side of the table and dealt out two hands.

Anna picked up hers and looked at the cards. They ended up playing for a while until the food arrived. Timur grabbed the cash she set aside and paid the driver. He brought the food to the table and swept the cards out of the way.

They each took some mouthfuls and Anna asked Timur how he got into the military from being a painter. He talked about the Beslan school hostage crisis and how he wanted to do something good. He turned out to be a pretty good marksman and followed that route.

"You said you wanted more shooting lessons..." Timur prompted her, taking a sip of his drink.

"Yeah, if you have time. It's been almost a year now since I've held a gun of any kind. I feel like I should brush up on that." Anna chewed carefully. "This pizza is delicious."

"Well, I have some rifles here. We will find one that is comfortable for you. There is a place in the hills that Maxim and I go to hunt and it's good for basic sniping practice." Timur nodded. "We will do that, yes. I will tell Alex that I have you and that I will be out of office tomorrow."

"Okay," Anna said quietly.

"You are worried? You will have me there beside you. You will be okay."

"It's not that."

"What then? Talk to me."

"I don't want too many people to know where I am. I'm still hesitant about Team Rainbow."

Timur tossed his pizza crust to his plate and turned to Anna. "What happened that night?"


	37. Details

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna gets her deserved lesson.

**Chapter Thirty-Seven - Details**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Timur “Glaz” Glazkov

**Location:**

Moscow, Russia

"The facility was starting to feel like home and Zero shattered that," Anna suddenly lost her appetite and set down the rest of her slice of pizza. She motioned to the painting, now leaning up against the TV stand. "Home is something I needed at that time. That night was a reminder that I would never truly have somewhere."

"Mark was furious at Zero when he told us the plan," Timur said. "He fought him so hard. The rest of us convinced him otherwise. Including me. I'm sorry, Anna."

Anna shook her head. "It's in the past. All we can do is control our actions going forward. Very few people at Rainbow know I'm around."

"Who?"

"Harry, Mike, Seamus, James, Mark, of course, you… I think Mark wanted to talk to Gilles about me just in case all four SAS guys were out of England. He could come up and help me if I needed it. And I think Mark is also talking to Miles about reinforcements."

Timur leaned on his hand. "Reinforcements for what?"

"I bought a house in England." Anna looked down.

Timur raised his eyebrows. "Seems like you have a home now then. I'm happy to hear that. Maybe you can visit the facility in Greece... when you're ready. A lot of people miss you. Grace talks about you a lot. Elias asks Mark if he's heard anything everytime they cross paths. You've become a little bit of a legend."

Anna scoffed. "Notorious, maybe."

"You looked Zero in his face and shot him three times. You don’t know what that man has done in his lifetime. He’s a champion. And you're fearless for it. We all are impressed with how you got past everyone, 'killed' our leader, and vanished despite everyone's best efforts. You evaded massive intelligence agencies globally for almost a year." Timur shrugged. "That's scary. You are good at this Anna. If you were a bad guy, we would fear you."

She sighed. Timur picked up his crust, dipped it in some extra sauce, and ate it. He dusted off his fingers, and waved for Anna to follow him. She took a mouthful of her cocktail and stood to follow him into his bedroom. He opened his closet door wide to reveal a gun safe. He unlocked it and started laying rifles out on his bed. He set four down and waved at Anna to try them. "None of them are loaded. It's safe."

Anna hesitantly stepped forward and grabbed the one nearest to her. She turned it over in her hands, making sure that the muzzle was not aimed at Timur at all. She raised it up, set the back against her shoulder, rested her cheek, and looked down sights, her finger resting carefully along the side of the trigger guard. She felt along it while aiming and removed it again. Anna repeated her inspection with all four rifles and found one she liked.

It was a green rifle. "Ah! SV-98. Is a good gun for you. We also have some snipers that use it. We will take it out tomorrow… I will contact Harry and have him call Alexandr to excuse me for 'VIP protection'. I will tell him to not use your name at your request."

Anna handed the rifle safely to Timur. "Thank you. I really do appreciate that."

Timur nodded while he locked up the rifles again. Anna made her way back out to the main room and finished off her drink. She walked her glass and the plate to the kitchen and set it down. Timur came out of his room and grabbed his dishes as well and set them in the sink. He returned to Anna's painting by the TV stand and picked it up.

"May I keep this?" He asked.

"You want a picture of my mom?" Anna laughed, warm from the alcohol.

"Well…" Timur laughed as well. "I want a picture of your work. You can do something else if you don’t want me looking at her. And then I can paint you something too."   
  
“I wanted to buy one of your paintings for my house, actually.”   
“No no, you’re not giving me money for it. Is a gift.”   
“I think art is hard work in a variety of ways. You should be paid for everything you put into them.”   
“I agree, but if you paint me something, then I would consider that payment enough.”   
“I also want to buy one for a charity event. It’s a little late for the current one, but they are planning on hosting more in the coming months, it sounds like. My employer auctions off art to fund education charities a few times a year.”   
  
“Your employer?” Timur asked and furrowed his brow. He set her painting down with his other stored canvases. “Who do you work for?”   
  
“I’m a conservator for the Royal Collection Trust.”   
“Royal Collec… You work on the Royal Collection? That’s amazing. They want a piece of my art?”

“I work on the portraits quite often. Queen Rosalyn is pleased with my work it seems.”   
“Would the Queen see my art?”   
“Yes, she attends the events. But they’re usually hosted by others in the Family. There are usually a lot of high bidders.”   
“Like who?”   
“Well, Princess Imogen wants me to talk to Prince Thomas of Norway at the upcoming one so…”   
“So my painting could be in a pala…?”   
  
Timur cut himself off and covered his mouth, overwhelmed. Anna looked over and giggled. “All the paintings are donated by all kinds of people - famous painters and hobbyists alike - but they always sell. Apparently they’ve had political leaders, CEOs, royalty from various countries, and celebrities all attend and bid.”   
  
Timur looked stunned. He stood without a word and flipped through some of his blank canvases. “What size should I donate?”   
  
“Whatever you want. They’ve had paintings as big as three metres by five metres, and as small as 30 centimetres by 45 centimetres according to their logs.” Anna looked over the back of the couch at him fretting over planning.   
  
He started mumbling to himself in Russian and pulled out a canvas of moderate size. About a metre by a metre and a half. He nodded and set it to the side. “I will need to plan for this. This is… more important than almost anything I’ve ever done.” He turned back to Anna and she was looking at him with a soft expression on her face.   
  
\-----

Timur woke up the next morning and stretched. Icing his ribs yesterday helped, but they were still a little sore. He climbed out of bed, went to take a shower, and saw Anna awake. He looked at the clock. 0554.

"You're up early," Timur said.

"You're shirtless," Anna replied, looking up to him. Timur looked down, shrugged, and went into the bathroom. Anna sighed and picked out an outfit that allowed her comfort, movement, and warmth. She grabbed her toiletries and set them on the couch beside her. Truth was, she was kept up by nightmares but she wasn't about to admit that on the morning of unofficial sniper training.

Timur had a quick shower and covered himself to go back into his bedroom to dress. Anna got up and went to shower. She appreciated the pre-heated room from the steam. The water helped her wake up a little more and she got dressed in the clothes she picked out before heading back into the main room.

Timur was already in there with his gear on, and a case on the ground. His eyes crinkled with a smile and he opened his arms wide. "Good morning! I am no longer shirtless."

"I see that," Anna smiled.

"You sleep well?" Timur asked with a laugh.

"Well enough," Anna replied and put her stuff into her luggage.

"With that tone, I don't believe you. Tell me the truth and maybe then I will take you shooting." Timur crossed his arms.

"I had nightmares last night but it's normal," Anna defended herself. "I'm awake enough to shoot."

"Nightmares about what?"

"Getting chased. Tortured."

Timur furrowed his brow. Anna threw her hands up. "Not you too. I'm fine! They're just nightmares. They can't hurt me."

Timur stepped over the case and walked up to Anna putting her jacket on. He raised his eyebrows, taking an imposing stance. His gaze was intense and she sighed.

"I'm not fine but I'm awake enough to shoot. I promise." Anna broke eye contact. "I'll let you know if that changes."

Anna went to turn away but Timur grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him again. She stared back at him, but eventually waned and looked down. He sighed this time and let go of her face.   
  
“This is where I wish you weren’t with Mark romantically,” Timur said sadly. “It would have been a good moment to kiss you.”   
  
“Please don’t flirt like that,” Anna spat. “I’ve gone into situations less isolated with men I trust more and was still… assaulted.”   
  
Timur looked over to her and his whole posture softened. “I’m sorry. We don’t have to go if you’re hesitant. I want you to be able to trust me.”   
  
“No, I want to do this. I also know that if anything happens to me at your hands, Mark will hunt you down.”

“This is true. I will not touch you or flirt or… anything. I promise. I am going to keep you safe.”   
“... Thank you.”   
  
\-----

Timur drove them to a quiet spot in the hills about two hours out from Moscow. It was fenced in and he had to use his military ID to gain them access. He and Anna exited the vehicle and carried everything up to the pre-set sniper nests. Of course, they could set up their own areas, but the targets are set to be used from these platforms. For their needs today, they would be good enough.   
  
Timur opened the first case and brought out the SV-98 sniper rifle that Anna chose the day before. He showed her how to set everything up to use, how to adjust the dials on the scope and why they were important. He got her positioned on the rifle on the platform to make sure the adjustments were set for her size and shape. It needed to be somewhat comfortable since they were going to be there for hours.

  
Timur nodded and got her to sit upright. He pointed out some instruments on the far hill and handed her some binoculars. There were various readings of pressure, wind, and other meteorological factors. He pulled out a notebook and showed her his previous readings and calculations.   
  
“These bullets go 1000 metres, or more sometimes… it takes a full second or two to travel that far so these things can alter the path.” Timur tapped his notebook with his pencil. “Let me calculate this out.”   
  
Timur read the fluctuating instruments and jotted down some numbers. He talked Anna through what this meant for the trajectory of the bullet, and how to adjust her scope to counter that. He got her to look at the dials and adjust them. He pulled out a spotter scope and laid down beside her. He looked through and found one of the targets.   
  
“Find yellow and shoot. We will adjust from there.”   
“I already have red in my sights.”   
  
Timur found red, and watched. “Okay… Fire.”   
  
Anna squeezed the trigger and it hit up and to the right. Timur narrowed his eyes and told her adjustments. She turned the dials, pulled the slide, and waited for his queue. “Fire.”   
  
This time, the bullet was just over the metal figure’s left shoulder. Timur told her such and Anna turned the dials by a hair and pulled the slide. As she aimed down, she felt a wind over her arms. “Fire.” She angled the muzzle a touch and shot. The bullet clipped the figure’s arm. Timur looked over to her. “You adjusted to the wind, that is good but not quite enough. You hit the target right by the left wrist.”   
  
“It would still hurt.” Anna didn’t look up from her rifle and pulled the slide. The wind died down, and she fired. Timur looked through the scope and saw that it struck the abdomen. He told her how to adjust her hands and to take another shot. She pulled the trigger. Neck.   
  
“Well… There goes his head.” Timur smiled. “Very good. Now, find yellow.”


	38. Korea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna travels a little more and then heads home to Mark and Miles.

**Chapter Thirty-Eight - Korea**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Grace “Dokkaebi” Nam

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Miles “Castle” Campbell

**Location:**

Tokyo, Japan

Seoul, South Korea

North Duffield area, England

Anna spent only a few extra days in Moscow with Timur, and he followed his promise and kept things professional. He sounded pleased with her progress on her sniper skills, and she made sure to tell Mark that. He was proud of her. She spent a lot of time showing Timur how to mend torn canvases, putty, and repaint them with a layer of varnish. He took notes in Russian in a different notebook. He kept the painting of her mother and hung it up by his couch. She was eating some food in the airport terminal on her layover between Tokyo and Sydney when Mark beeped her.   
  
_ Buzz. _ (Incoming message.)  _ Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz. _ (Are you available?)   
  
Click, click. (Yes.)   
  
She dusted off her hands and pulled her phone out of her purse. Just as she found it, the screen started to light up and she answered.   
  
“Hello.”   
“오랜만에!”   
  
Anna paused, confused as what she heard.   
  
“It’s Grace! I overheard Harry talking to Mark about you and I had to jump in! Let me put you on speaker...”

Anna could suddenly hear more ambient noise. She greeted the open air and Harry and Mark said hello.   
  


“Where are you right now?” Harry asked.

  
“I’m in Tokyo, but my flight to Sydney is in about two hours. I’ll be there only for a day I think.”   
  


“We want you to fly to Seoul after that and meet up with Grace. She has some updates for your chip.” Harry continued. 

  
“Yeah, I can do that. But if she’s there with you…?”

  
“I’m heading back today!” Grace clarified.

  
“Okay, then. I’ll check flights.” Anna laughed. “I cannot stay long in South Korea though… I need to be back in England for late next week.”   
  
“Okay. I’m still taking you out for some of the best food you’ll ever have, though!”   
  
“I don’t doubt it,” Anna replied. They talked for a little longer before Anna had to board her flight. She went shopping in Sydney hoping to find a nice dress to wear to the event in ten days. They mostly had casual summer dresses so she abandoned the search.   
  
\-----   
  
Grace met Anna at the airport and almost missed her wearing the blonde wig she bought in Australia. Anna giggled and grabbed her shoulders, surprising Grace. “Let’s get food! I’m dying for some spice!”   
  
Grace drove Anna to her hotel nearby and got her settled in. They left the car parked there and they took the subway downtown. Anna thoroughly enjoyed her meal but not nearly as much as Grace did. They talked about a lot of different things over food and it was good to catch up. Anna talked about her hiatus, buying the house, and working for the Royal Collection Trust. Grace seemed enamoured. Anna wasn’t sure why she was telling her all of this, but it felt good to talk to someone.   
  
The two returned to the hotel and took Grace’s vehicle back to her unit by the military base outside of the city. It was a small studio apartment but it was enough for someone like her. She had a large computer set up in where the main living space was, her bed beside that, and the kitchen and bathroom right near the door.   
  
Anna took off her shoes and entered the unit. Grace walked past her to the computer and set everything up. Anna followed and stood nearby, waiting for Grace to prompt her. There was a tablet looking thing on the desktop with the little demon face animated on it.   
  


“Oh, so that’s what that is.” Anna looked down at it a little closer. Grace turned to her. “The little face that comes up on our phones.”   
  
“My hangeul! It’s a little Korean creature that plays tricks on humans! Sometimes it helps them. It’s where I got my codename from. Dokkaebi!” Grace grinned deviously and Anna smiled.   
  
“I’ll think of you whenever I call Mark then,” She said. Grace grinned even wider at that. She was typing away and her Logic Bomb finally stopped the loading. She looked over and got Anna to hold her hand with the chip closer to the tablet.   
  
Grace tapped a few things on the screen of her device, and typed a few more things in the computer before the demon face started up on her screen again with a loading bar. Grace turned to Anna and smiled. “Keep your hand there until the screen turns off. You know… you’re a tough lady to find. You really got Sam to put his foot in his mouth. He wanted you to go hard? You delivered. Just disappeared! He was impressed, but also worried. I like that about you. You’re not afraid to face up against authority.”   
  
“That wasn’t what I was trying to do, but thank you.”   
“Mark told me and Harry about why you ran. I get it, but you did it in a way to send a message, too. You just cut them off. You don’t need them. They shouldn’t doubt you.”   
  
Anna sighed.   
  
“I was just with Timur. He said that Rainbow would fear me if I was on the opposite side.”   
“It’s true!  _ I _ couldn’t find you.  _ Mark _ couldn’t find you. You were a ghost to all of us. You were just… gone. Like you never existed. That’s difficult!”

“I suppose so.”   
  
The Logic Bomb’s screen went back to its menu. Anna relaxed her arm and flexed her fingers. “So what does this update do?”   
  
“It allows us to track you. Or allows me to, anyways. You really did scare us. Particularly Harry.” Grace explained. “You left angry and he was worried you were going to be reckless.” Grace crossed her arms. “You can also use messaging now. It keeps a log on a cloud computer in a location only I know with my own security system. Mark wanted access to it too, but I said no. ‘She’s all mine!’ Haha! Let’s give it a try…”   
  
Grace opened up her personal phone and took her glasses off. Anna also pulled out her phone. “How do I do this?”   
  
“Hold in your chip for five seconds as if you were going to call Mark. Then, a menu will come up with options instead.” Grace raised her eyebrows. “I have the contact information for most of Team Rainbow stored here for you already. You can press it on the screen or click in your chip once to call Mark, or twice to message someone else.”   
  
Anna held in her chip and her screen lit up. There were two buttons. Anna pressed her chip twice and the messenger opened. It looked a lot like the screen on the Logic Bomb. Anna clicked on Grace’s contact and typed in ‘hello’. Grace held her phone up and it showed the message. Anna smiled.   
  
“This… this is great. Thank you!”   
“You know I’ve got you! It’s a shame I have to be gone so early. It would have been fun to have you stay here and have a badass bitch night!”   
“I wouldn’t even know what that entails. But yes, it’s late and I should be going…”   
  
Grace grabbed her keys and took Anna back to the hotel. They hugged and talked a little more before Anna went upstairs. She slept soundly before her flights back to England the following day.

\-----

Anna fussed with the bags at Heathrow. She ended up doing some shopping in Paris during her layover and found the perfect dress for the charity event. She had it in a garment bag because it wouldn’t fit in her compact luggage case. Her carry on was also fuller with new disguise materials, makeup, and wigs from abroad. She had on a short blonde wig when she got back to England. She approached Mark from his left and called out to him to avoid scaring him. He gave her a kiss, helped her with the luggage, and walked back to his car with her.   
  
“Miles is here,” Mark warned her as they were putting her bags away. “He’s at your place right now gathering measurements for the bunker hatches. He also helped me install the security system I designed.”   
  
“Okay, thank you.”

“How were your travels?”   
“Smooth. There were some people I was suspicious of in Germany, and then again in Turkey. A man on the train in Russia approached me but he left when I said I didn’t speak Russian. Timur is well as you know. Grace and I caught up. I apparently can text the majority of people on Rainbow now so that’s nice, I guess. Flights back were long. I did some shopping in Milan and Paris. Found a dress for the event... Finally. Met a cute guy in London. Going to take him home with me. Might keep him around.”   
  
Anna gave Mark a playful grin. He just shook his head in response but she could see a hint of a smile. The drive back was quiet. Anna was worn out from flying so often so she dozed to Mark’s engineering podcasts. It was around dinner when they got back to her house. They walked in and Miles was making food for all of them. It was a roast chicken with potatoes and asparagus.   
  
“Ahh, that smells so good!” Anna put her purse down on the island in the kitchen and gave Miles a hug. “It’s good to see you.”   
  
“Same to you. It’s good to see you’re alright.” Miles gave her a quick hug back. “You have a lovely house. That bunker is a piece of work, for sure. It’s ancient from what I can tell, but people have kept it up over the years.”

“It’s one of the reasons why I bought this place. All around, it’s a great building.”   
“Definitely is! Food’s almost ready... ‘Bout ten minutes.”   
“I’ll go get changed then. Be right back!”   
  
Anna grabbed some of her bags and brought them upstairs with her. It looked like Mark had been sleeping here as the bed covers were tidier than when she left them.  _ Military boys. _ She set her luggage on the rack at the foot of the bed and unzipped it. She sorted the clean clothes from the dirty and got changed into some comfortable leggings, a tank top, and a light kimono style jacket. It was getting into late summer, and she was hoping for a bonfire later with the two of them.

Anna walked back down the stairs and Miles was making up plates for everyone. Mark had set the dining room table and was getting her a glass of wine. She smiled softly as he handed it to her. “Thanks, love.”   
  
All three of them sat down and caught up over food. The two men were debating over best snacks for summer evenings and Anna just stared at them with a goofy smile on her face. Miles caught her watching them and brought her into the conversation.   
  
“Oh, anything is nice. I just like food.”   
“You sound like Julien! That man can eat.”   
  
Anna laughed, and looked down. She stopped eating a while ago and pushed her plate to the side. She held in her chip and opened up the messaging app. She sent Grace a quick message about her getting home safe. She also sent the same message to Timur and said who it was. Anna slid her phone away.

“What do your parents cook most often? I have a theory about food.” Miles turned to her.   
  
“Oh, I don’t know,” She replied softly.   
  
“There’s got to be something!” He probed. Mark caught his eye and shook his head to change topics, but Anna missed that cue.   
  
“I haven’t seen my parents in almost a decade. Any of my family, actually.” Anna said. Miles started to speak but closed his mouth when he noticed that she was going to continue. “It’s okay. I faked my death about nine years ago in Argentina so that they wouldn’t come looking for me. It was a plane crash into the ocean. No survivors.”   
  
“That’s really rough, I’m sorry. It’s got to be hard to live how you do. I’m glad you have someone like Mark to keep you sane.”   
“It’s better this way. They’re safer. They’re not a target or a way to manipulate me. I wouldn’t be able to say no to demands if they had someone.”   
  
Anna pulled out her phone again and searched her mother up on social media for the first time in a couple of years. Her face was still bright, and her auburn hair still shone. Also in the profile picture was Anna’s father. His hair was a duller brown with streaks of grey, but his smile lit up the picture just as much as her mother’s eyes did. She passed her phone over to the men and they looked at her.

  
“You look a lot like her.”   
“I remember her from when we were younger from the social group. She looks the same, but her hair is shorter. Time has been kind to her.”   
  
“I could only hope to look that good when I’m her age,” Anna laughed and took her phone back. She casually scrolled through the profile before her smile faded. Mark looked over with a furrowed brow, but Anna spoke before he could ask anything. “My baby brother got married. I never met this woman but they look happy.”   
  
There was a moment of silence in the air. Anna’s smile returned. “I might get you to help me send him money anonymously. Or maybe Grace. Either one of you. He can’t know it’s me.”   
  
“We can figure something out.”   
“Thank you.”   
  
Anna took another look at the photo of all of them in their wedding attire and sighed.  _ I wish I could have been there for him. _


	39. Event

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna fulfills her promise to the Princess.

**Chapter Thirty-Nine - Event**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

James “Smoke” Porter

Seamus "Sledge" Cowden

Mike “Thatcher” Baker

**Location:**

London, England

Anna rubbed her palms to calm her nerves. She knew that the SAS was providing bodyguarding for this event. She knew the four from Team Rainbow were among those numbers. She knew where they were stationed within the Palace, but she couldn’t shake the nervousness. Her goal was to blend into crowds, not to stand out. And definitely not to draw people towards her to speak to her. She took some deep breaths, smoothed out her deep maroon velvet fitted dress, and entered the room. The announcer called her name out and she curtsied to the Princesses and Queen present.   
  
Princess Imogen approached her with a big smile. “You look amazing. Thank you for doing this! I’m so happy you’re here! I can’t believe you’re _ actually _ here.”   
  
“It’s a little nerve-wracking, to be honest. But I’m glad that we could make this work. Where would you like me to start?”   
  
“I will introduce you to a few people to get the conversations going, but then you can do whatever you would like. I imagine that they will come to you once word spreads about this fit lady with the blinding brain.” Princess Imogen giggled. “Let’s go.”   
  
Anna sighed and followed her around. She was introduced to many people in rapid succession and it was difficult to keep up. She was grateful that Princess Imogen granted her the attending guest list the day before so she could look up the more important guests and familiarize herself with them beforehand. She smiled sweetly to everyone and complimented the ladies on their dresses. She invited them all to approach her with any questions about any of the pieces during the evening before thanking them for their time and being swept off to another group.   
  
“And last but not least, Prince Thomas!” Princess Imogen grinned. “Maybe he’ll sway you away from this imaginary bloke you have hidden somewhere.”   
  
“Doubt it, but let’s meet him, then.”   
  
Princess Imogen walked up to a conversation of some well dressed men and apologized for the interruption. She introduced Anna who smiled. Princess Imogen then introduced the group and it turned out to be several royals from Norway. Anna looked a little stunned, but quickly curtsied.   
  
“That’s not necessary,” One of them said to her kindly with a smile.   
  
“I’m not familiar with Norwegian Royalty protocols unfortunately. Thank you, Your Highness,” Anna looked down bashfully, but with a smile. “I am one of the conservationists with the Royal Collection Trust. I will be a resource for you all tonight should any of you have any questions about the art pieces up for auction. Please do not hesitate to approach me. I talk… a little  _ too much _ about art sometimes.”   
  
That got some modest chuckles out of a few of them, including Prince Thomas. Anna bid them a wonderful evening and took her leave. She was soon approached by a woman in a blue sparkly dress about one of the pieces. Anna smiled wide and followed her. She spoke at length about the artist, the piece, the intention behind it, and some fun bits of information. Princess Imogen had a fresh pair of white cotton gloves at each artwork for Anna to use to point things out to the guests. She put them to quick use and showed the guests how there was a tear in this canvas and it almost didn’t make it to the auction but was repaired expertly by the Trust. Others had joined to listen to her at this point and she was thanked. She returned the gloves to their box and nodded.   
  
Slowly she walked around the exterior of the room examining each piece and talking to the people that were also looking alongside her. She threw out little bits of information to make the piece more appealing and tried to sound as persuasive as she could. This happened for the first hour or so until she had to step out into a hallway to catch her breath. While this dress made her feel confident, she was still wearing velvet in summer and was starting to get warm.   
  
“I would say ‘du ser deilig ut i den kjolen’ but I don’t know if you speak Norwegian and I really shouldn’t translate that to English in such a formal setting.”   
  
Anna turned around and Prince Thomas was standing behind her. She smirked, amused. “I’m not sure what to think about that, sir, but it sounds like you might get in trouble.”   
  
“I probably would... Ah… I  _ definitely _ would. I shall amend it to ‘you look wonderful in that dress’.” He laughed. “I saw you head out and I was worried you were running away before I got to speak to you about the art.”   
  
“No, no. I will be here all night, sir. I promise. I just appreciate some fresh air after talking. I’m not normally speaking this much.”   
“That’s okay. I heard you talking about the painting with the ship. ‘Cascade’ or whatever it is called. Quite a story! I could listen to you all night. And look at you too.”   
  
Anna blushed, not used to being flirted with so much. She wasn’t sure how to shut down a Prince respectfully when she needed him to spend his money.  _ I should have worn a fake wedding ring to prevent this. _ She smoothed out the tight dress again and stood tall. She played with her jeweled necklace while speaking. “Well, I’m ready to go back inside if there are any pieces that you have questions about.”   
  
Prince Thomas kept Anna busy for the next hour until the dancing started. Anna stood near the back and listened to the band play a waltz. She leaned against the wall beside one of the SAS guards. He looked out the corner of his eye at her and it caught her attention. She looked over and grinned. Quietly, she whispered, “you clean up well, Baker.”   
  
“Good to see you,” He whispered back. Anna crossed her arms and watched people walk around the art talking. The banquet already happened earlier in the evening, and the dancing portion of the ball was finally taking part in the next room. Anna remembered her promise to Princess Imogen to have a few songs with Prince Thomas. Apparently it is one of his favourite things to do at events and parties. Anna sighed.   
  
“Do excuse me, I have to go dance with a prince. Apparently, it’ll make him bid higher.” Anna looked to Mike, raised her eyebrows, and felt him watch her walk over to the hall set for dancing and evening snacks. She grabbed a flute of champagne and stood to the side. She felt Prince Thomas notice her as he danced with Princess Geraldine. She pretended to not see him and took a sip of her alcohol. The song ended and he bowed to his dance partner but quickly came up to Anna.   
  
“I do apologize for interrupting your refreshment,” He spoke confidently. “But I would like to ask you for a dance.”   
  
Anna pretended to be flattered and nodded. She set her flute down and joined him on the dance floor. Another classical piece was getting played and he led her around through the choreography. She followed as well as she could in the tight dress. He was not shy about keeping his hand all over her waist. They danced for about three songs before Anna needed to get another breath of fresh air. There were more ladies waiting to dance with Prince Thomas along the wall and he was happy to oblige.   
  
Anna returned to the larger room and spoke to a few more people before the auction was due to formally start. She did the best that she could to talk up the art and make it appealing to bidders. She was tired from the talking, the dancing, and the mental gymnastics she needed to do to keep on top of conversations and relationships. She felt like she did well.   
  
Bidders were called to the room and the auctioneer was introduced. One by one the art was claimed. Princess Imogen found Anna along the back wall and praised her efforts.   
  
“The success of this night is definitely by your hands.”   
“Oh stop. You’ve been working on this for weeks now. I merely talked to people you invited about the art you managed to gather. Give yourself some credit.”   
“I saw you dancing with Prince Thomas. Does your man compare?”   
“Surpasses Prince Thomas, I’m afraid.”   
“Oh, you’re pulling my leg. I need to meet this bloke! It’s simply not fair. Military wife, aren’t yah?”   
  
Anna laughed, knowing that Mike was listening in.   
  
“Is Prince Thomas always that flirty?”   
“He was flirty? Anna! He likes you. You’re really turning down a  _ Prince _ Thomas for a Tommy?”   
“Yes, ma’am. I’m not one for centre-stage. And also, my ‘Tommy’ and I have history. A couple of hours can’t erase that.”   
“It is settled. I need to meet him. He sounds perfect for you.”   
  
Anna smiled. The auctioneer called another piece sold. Princess Imogen punched her playfully on the shoulder and wandered off. Mike never said anything.   
  
‘Cascade’ was up and Prince Thomas put in his bid quickly. The numbers rose but he was victorious. It fetched a good price and Anna beamed inside. An hour passed and the auction concluded. If she added correctly, over 2 million euros were collected for charity from forty paintings.  _ Amazing. _ Anna found Princess Imogen after more people went to dance.

“Thank you for having me this evening. I believe that my work has been fulfilled so I shall be taking my leave.”   
“Of course. I cannot thank you enough for your work here today. I will see you tomorrow to help ship them, yes?”   
“Absolutely, ma’am.”   
“Wonderful. I will tell you that the Queen is pleased with your work tonight as well. She will compensate you for it.”   
“It was an honour to be here. Please tell her to donate that money to the education fund instead.”   
“Very kind of you. I hope you get some rest tonight as it’s going to be pretty busy the next couple of days.”   
“Yes, ma’am. I will see you in the morning.”   
“Bring your man with you. I’m sure we could use help with the heavy lifting and I am serious. I want to meet him. It’s an order.”   
“I cannot defy an order, ma’am. I will make it happen.”   
  
Anna curtsied and walked out of the room. Prince Thomas caught up with her in the hall leading outside.   
  
“You are leaving... I thought you said that you would be staying the entire night? It is barely into the evening! I was hoping to dance with you more...”   
“I unfortunately need to work on preparing the art for transport first thing in the morning. Congratulations on your wins, by the way. Those pieces will look splendid in your home, I’m sure of it.”   
“Will you deliver the art personally? I would love to have you around the palace for a few days… or weeks.”   
“Unfortunately not.”   
“Unfortunately for me? Or unfortunately for you?”   
“Unfortunately for you. I am not meant to be a princess, Prince Thomas. Though there are a lot of lovely women inside that are very interested in having a few more dances with you tonight. I sincerely hope that you have a wonderful evening.”   
“May I at least have a kiss before you go?”   
“I'm sorry, but I am a taken woman. I don’t think that would be appropriate, sir.”

Prince Thomas’ face dropped and he took a step backwards. “I do apologize. I didn’t realize I was overstepping.”

“I've taken no offence. I should have told you earlier but it’s a little difficult navigating Royal expectations at a formal event like this as a commoner.” Anna looked down, feigning shame. Prince Thomas nodded, thanked her for her honesty, bid her goodnight, and returned to the festivities. Anna continued her walk down the hall to the entrance where three SAS guards were posted.

Anna paused, jostling through her purse. Princess Imogen came dashing down the hall towards her and held something in her hands. “Anna! I’m glad I caught you. You have forgotten your gloves!”

“Ah, thank you, Genny.”

Princess Imogen looked a little surprised at the informal name she used and glanced at the guards. Anna caught this and smiled. “Could you two give us a moment, please?” James and Seamus nodded and walked a little further down the hall to keep guard, their backs facing the group.

“I told you before that I would talk to my boyfriend about meeting you,” Anna started. “He agreed after some convincing… and some promises.”

The third guard stepped forward and bowed. Mark interlaced his fingers with Anna’s. He looked striking in the formal suit with his normally messy hair groomed tidy. “Good evening, Your Highness.”

Princess Imogen finally realized what was happening. "You! A ‘Tommy’... Bah!" A smile spread across her face from ear to ear. She curtsied in return and circled them. Finally, she bit her lip, fixed a non-existent issue with Mark’s lapel, and took a step back.

“I approve, Anna. You two look great together. And I’m glad he wasn’t fictional… With how you were withholding things, I seriously had doubts! I’m happy that… he can take care of you. And I’m sure you both know in what way I mean… it’s a rough world out there… please protect her.” Princess Imogen looked Mark in the eyes. “She’s important to me.”

“Of course, ma’am. She’s important to me as well.”

Princess Imogen smiled approvingly and gave Anna a sudden hug. Anna was not ready for it and had to take a step backwards to accommodate for the impact, but kept her balance. Anna broke the handhold and hugged Princess Imogen in return.

“You two have a good night. Don’t be strangers.”

“Thank you, Genny. I’m glad everything went well.”

Princess Imogen returned to the ball. James and Seamus returned to their posts. And Anna and Mark returned to the hotel room so that she could fulfill those promises.


	40. Chance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna was hit with a one in a million moment and a panic attack ensues. Danger abound!

**Chapter Forty - Chance**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Harry “Six” Pandey

Mike “Thatcher” Baker

James “Smoke” Porter

Seamus “Sledge” Cowden

**Location:**

London, England

North Duffield Area, England

Anna was at the Palace first thing in the morning with Mark. The Gallery was bustling with Trust employees and police to accommodate for the moving of the artwork from the auction. Mark was on VIP duty for Anna but kept his distance as they needed a lot of room to work.

Anna spent hours adding protective facing each of the paintings, helping others fit them tightly into custom made crates, and filling out the paperwork. Princess Imogen made an appearance and nodded to Mark on her way inside. He nodded back to her in silent respect. She stopped in to talk to Anna about the progress and to let her know that the lorry was there to transport the art. Anna nodded. They were slightly behind schedule but it was for reasons that needed to be taken care of.

There was no one to escort the largest pieces of art down in the Gallery elevator. Anna asked several people but they were all tasked with other things.  _ These need to get loaded first... I have to do it. _ Anna swallowed and told Mark that she would be the one to take them down to be loaded. He understood and walked with her to the carts. Three pieces in crates were loaded on their edge onto the cart, and she plus two others started to wheel it down the hall to the Gallery entrance.

Security gave them access and they boarded the elevator down to a lower level. They wheeled the cart through the secondary security gate and through the exhibits while guests were there. It was not ideal, but it’s the only way these large paintings out to the truck. They maneuvered carefully past all the sculptures and people.  _ This should have happened before the Gallery opened. Damn damaged crate! _ Anna kept a careful eye on the edges of the crates, guest’s legs, displays, and her team. She was so focused that she didn’t realize that someone was following her.

Mark noticed and stopped the woman from pursuing. The woman struggled to release herself from Mark, and he tried his hardest to keep the woman quiet. The commotion caught Anna’s attention and she looked up at what was going on, and her blood froze in her veins.

“Anna! Annabelle! Unhand me! That’s my daughter! Anna!” The woman called. Anna felt her head spin. _No, this can’t be._ Her stomach dropped. _Why is she here?_ Anna spun to face the art again and motioned for the others to hold on and continue moving. _This isn’t safe for her! What is she doing here?_ _Why?_

Mark had the police remove Anna’s mother from the Gallery and Anna tried to ignore it. She bit her lip to keep her focus. The team finally got the art out to the lorry and Anna excused herself. She walked back inside and scanned her badge into the side office where she did her retouching work. She walked to the other side of the room and stared out the window trying to remember how to breathe. There was a knock on the door. Anna was frozen in fear.

_ Buzz. _ (Incoming message.)  _ Buzz, buzz. _ (All clear.)

Anna walked to the door and Mark was standing there. His face dropped when he saw her and ushered her inside the office. She returned to the far side of the room and slid down the wall until she was sitting on the floor in the corner. Mark crouched beside her and pulled her into a tight hug. Anna immediately started crying and shaking. Her breathing was uneven and her eyes dilated. “What is she doing here, Mark? Why is she here? I can’t believe she saw me. What am I going to do? I need to leave. I need to get out of here. She cannot be seen with me. No one can know. I need to…”

Mark hushed her and forced her to keep sitting. His face was filled with worry. Anna barely noticed.

“Anna,” Mark got her attention and he brushed the hair from her eyes. “You’re not going anywhere right now. You’re pale, your lip is bleeding down your chin, you look mad.”

“I’m not angry! I’m scared!”

“Mad. Crazy.”

“Oh.”

Anna shook on the floor, trying to catch her breath.

“I’ll call Harry and see if we can get you your room freshened up at the facility. We can keep you secur...” Mark started.

“I’m not worried about me! I’m worried about  _ her _ ! She said my name, Mark! My  _ name _ name _. _ Not ‘Annaliese’! People will  _ know _ !” Anna spoke so quickly that Mark barely caught it. “We need to take her somewhere. You work in intelligence! There is no magical memory removing serum somewhere in the world is there? Please tell me there is!”

“There’s no such thing as magic, Anna.”

Panicked, frustrated tears ran down Anna’s face and her breath caught in her throat. Mark stood and grabbed a tissue for Anna to wipe her face. “Breathe, Anna. Breathe.”

Anna tried to slow down and focus on her breaths, counting them out. Mark pulled her into another hug and just held her while her panic attack subsided. He petted her hair and kissed her forehead. She was clammy. They sat there for a quarter of an hour until Anna felt ready to talk to Princess Imogen. Mark left first, scanning the faces in the room. There was no one that he recognized. He clicked his chip twice and Anna left the office behind him. He kept tight beside her back to the elevator into the Palace.

Anna waited after the second guard checkpoint for Mark to retrieve Princess Imogen. It took a few minutes and Anna waited with her arms wrapped around herself. She still felt pale and weak. Princess Imogen approached her and noticed right away that things weren’t right. They had a hushed conversation and she gave them both leave. Princess Imogen got two police officers to escort them to their vehicle. Mark took a careful route back to the hotel to gather their belongings.

Anna shook the entire drive back to York. Mark looked tense and gripped the wheel of his car firmly. He pulled into the drive of the house and ushered Anna in through the garage. He immediately brought her upstairs for a shower and to get into comfier clothes. Mark sent a message to Harry to call ASAP while he waited for Anna to come out.

Mark ran his fingers through his messy hair and thought about how to fix this situation. He knew that Anna wouldn't let it go.

_ Annabelle. I haven't heard that name since we were kids… _ He sighed and closed his eyes. He sat on the edge of their bed and ran through scenarios in his mind.

_ Chirp, chirp, chiiirp. _

Mark opened his eyes and answered the call from Harry.

"Hello, Mark."

"Anna's mom saw her in London. Anna had a panic attack."

"Ah, that isn't good. Is Anna there? Can I talk to her?"

"She's showering right now, but I'll see if she's willing to talk after she dresses."

"Thank you. So what does this mean for her?"

"Her family thinks she's dead. They're going to stir up a lot of things looking for her now. There might be a rise in missions as people look for Anna in London. I'll inform the SAS about the possibility for terror activity in the coming months."

"Okay. I will have a meeting at the facility with the other operators so that everyone is on the same page."

"Good."

"Will she be okay?"

"I don't know. I'll let you know."

"Okay. Talk later."

Mark hung up, and called his CO. They have a brief conversation about what occurred and why London may be at risk. His CO took notes and said that he will talk to the police about increasing presence. Mark thanked him and hung up. He waited in silence for the shower to stop running. After a few minutes, Anna was done, and came out wrapped up in a towel.

Mark noticed that her eyes were red and puffy. He was crying in there. She walked over to the closet and grabbed some clean clothes from her side and laid them out on the bed. She went into her drawer and grabbed undergarments to put on as well.

"Almost a decade of work… gone." Anna stared down at the clothes. "I kept them safe for almost a decade and a fluke… a one off chance ruined it. Why was she even there?"

Anna looked up to Mark but he didn't have any answers. She sighed and grabbed her undergarments to put on. She draped the wet towel on a hook in the closet and he watched her. It's been a while since he really looked at all her scars. He forgot sometimes how much she's actually been though, how strong she actually was.

Mark stood and walked over to her as she put on her socks. He pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head. Anna hugged him and they stood there for a moment, processing the situation.

"Today did not erase a decade of safety you've given your family. You gave them a chance to live freely and that's a good thing. We will need to adapt and figure out how to manage this situation going forward." Mark spoke professionally. "It's not an easy situation but we're in this together. We will find her and get her to safety."

"Please… find her before someone else does."

\-----

Three days passed and Mark got word that Anna's mom was arrested trespassing at Buckingham Palace. She was telling the police in London that she was looking for her daughter, Anna, who died nine years ago. Apparently they sent her for a psych evaluation.

Mark told Anna to come with him. He wanted to keep her close and she would stay in police or SAS presence the entire time. He packed up his gear into a duffel, but they both wore their kevlar vests during the drive. He armed Anna with a pistol and he drove them both back to London to meet up with Harry, and the other SAS operators.

Anna greeted them all and Harry gave a meek smile.

"It's good to see you in person, Anna."

"... or should it be Annabelle?"

Anna looked over to Mike with his accusatory tone. Their eyes met.

"I was named Annabelle Tremblay when I was born. That's true. Upon my death, I renamed myself Annaliese Audette. Should I ever have to 'die' again, I will not hesitate to take another name. I am still Anna." Anna had a sharpness to her tone that Mike didn't react to. "I have not lied to you."

"That is a topic for another day. Anna, your mother is safely in custody. I am about to go talk to her. Is there anything I should know?" Harry faced Anna.

"I have no doubt that she would do anything in order to get to me. She is persistent and driven. It'll be difficult to redirect her attention." Anna spoke carefully.

Harry nodded and left the room with a police officer. Mark left Anna with the team while he got into his uniform. Mike had a sour look on his face but Seamus was talking to him about the football match. James was trying to talk to Anna but she seemed distracted by everything going on.

Mark returned with his mask on and rifle ready. "They just caught someone trying to sneak into the back entrance. Harry and Anna need to leave. Mrs. Tremblay, too."

The three men jumped into action. James threw his mask on, grabbed his gun in one hand, and Anna's arm in the other. He marched her out of the room and down the hall closely followed by Seamus. Mark and Mike went to interrupt the interview. Seamus led the way down to the garage where their armoured cars were parked.

Seamus stepped into the doorway and looked out into the underground car park. He saw nothing but hesitated. James pulled out his phone and used Grace's hacking app to access the cameras in the area. No person was visible. He said this to Seamus and they led the way out into the garage. Anna followed closely in her kevlar vest, pistol at the ready.

There was a cracking noise and Seamus was struck by a bullet in the arm. All three of them ran to cover between cars, the men on either side of Anna. James saw a person approaching in the reflective wax surface of another vehicle. He peeked up and shot them.

Seamus radioed inside that they were under fire in the garage before popping up and shooting at another person down the lane. James shook his head. "Where did they come from? There was no one on the cameras. Not a soul."

"Doesn't matter now, lad. We've got a job to do." Seamus peeked up and looked for movement. James did the same on the other side. Anna flattened herself to the ground and looked under the vehicles for feet. She didn't see any feet, but she did see a canister roll towards her.

It burst before she could say anything. A thick cloud of grey haze cropped up around them. Another canister bursting sound was heard. There was havoc. Anna was getting grabbed by what seemed like a dozen hands. She tried to escape them but was unsuccessful. Something struck her over the head as she heard gunfire around her. Her vision went black.  


\------  
  
Author note: The next couple of chapters will be released slower. Haha! ;)


	41. Infiltrate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anna finds herself in a dire situation.

**Chapter Forty-One - Infiltrate**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Harry “Six” Pandey

Mike “Thatcher” Baker

James “Smoke” Porter

Seamus “Sledge” Cowden

Sebastien “Buck” Côté

Gilles “Montagne” Touré

Gustave “Doc” Kateb

Jack “Pulse” Estrada

Morowa “Clash” Evans

Mrs. Julie Tremblay

**Location:**

London, England

North Duffield Area, England

James ran out of the smoke and held his rifle up. He saw the White Masks running away with Anna limp over the shoulder of one of them. He aimed, squeezed his trigger, and one fell to the ground. A White Mask appeared out from the smoke cloud and James changed aim and shot him dead. The terrorists with Anna disappeared.

The smoke cleared and James saw Seamus holding his head. Blood was running down from his ear and his mask was cracked. Three White Masks were dead beside him. Mark and Mike came out the door to the mess.

"Where's Anna?"

"We were ambushed. They smoked us and nicked her. Knocked her out!”

Mike looked at the seven dead terrorists on the ground. “How many were there?”

“Don’t know. The group that had Anna had at least four. I took one out.” James replied, dashing over to Seamus to see if he was alright. Mark’s rifle muzzle dropped when it clicked in.  _ They have Anna. _

A massive explosion sounded from the police station and the garage shook. All four SAS operatives were startled by the rumble, and braced themselves. The fire alarm started blaring and police inside were scattering, trying to figure out what happened and what needed to be done. All of them rushed down to the main level where they saw a hole in the wall leading to the outside. A car was screeching away and Mrs. Tremblay and Harry were gone. The officer that was guarding them was dead.

The room that they were in was partially in flames. A police officer ran in with a fire extinguisher and got to work putting out the table and ruble. Sirens sounded in the distance.

“Fuck,” Mike summed it up. He immediately started giving orders to Seamus and James. Mark clicked in his chip, hoping to reach Anna.

Click. (Outbound message.) Click, click, click, click. (Are you available?)

Silence.  _ She is probably still unconscious. _ Mike turned to Mark. “Contact Grace to get her into the city cameras. We need to figure out where they’re going.” Mark nodded and pulled out his phone. Mike did the same, and Mark could hear him talk to who sounded like Eliza.

“Hello…?” Grace muttered, sounding half asleep.

“Grace. White Masks have Anna and Harry. We need in on the cameras around London. Also need you to get us Anna’s location.”

“I… I’m on it! Where should I start?”

“My location and radiate out.”

“Roger. Call you back in a flash!”

Grace hung up the phone. Mike was coordinating with Eliza to get operators out to England. “We have Seamus for breaching power but more hostage rescue would be good. This might get dirty. They ambushed us and there were a lot of them.”

Mark looked over and saw that James and Seamus were gone. Mike was nodding to what she was saying. Mark was looking around to the fire being put out. Things were smouldering, but it wasn’t going to take the building down. A fire engine pulled up outside and some police went out to talk to them. The firefighters came into the room through the hole in the wall and started inspecting and investigating. Two firefighters checked on the dead officer and shook their heads. They carried his corpse into the interior hallways out of sight.

Click. (Outbound message.) Click, click, click, click. (Are you available?)

Silence.

Mike hung up. “All we can hope for is that they took all three of them to the same location. Eliza is making calls to get people out here.”

James came running back into the room. “If they’re staying local, there are a few empty buildings ‘round here that they could take over and use. They don’t want to be found so they don’t want to make a scene. In and out and hide quickly. The peelers are heading out to patrol and scout for anything for us.”   
  
Mark was silent. Seamus returned after talking to the police about the garage. James took his mask off and ruffled his hair. Mike walked back into the main building, waiting for a call back from Eliza. Mark’s hand vibrated, and he waited, but realized it was his phone ringing and not the chip. He answered Grace.   
  
“Anna’s not far. It seems like they’re only a few kilometres away. There is a storage warehouse at one of the marinas east of you. Looks like a ten minute drive. I’m working on hacking those cameras now to get you vision inside. Coordinates sent to your phone.” Grace explained to him quickly.   
  
“Thank you,” Mark answered and hung up. He went to find Mike and relayed the information. He nodded and got them all to pack up. They grabbed some extra police units and went to secure the warehouse until the other Rainbow operators arrived.

\-----

It was well into the night when Sebastien and Jack got to the scene. Morowa let them through to the rest of the Team. Gilles and Gustave were already there. Mike called them all in and gave them a briefing.   
  
“Anna and her mother are inside the building here. Harry is absent but he might be out of camera view. There are at least 25 White Masks in there that we can see. Likely more out of sight. The camera feeds are being sent to your phones now thanks to Grace.” Mike started. He leaned down to a map on the table. “Entrances are here, here, and here. Gilles and Seamus. You are both going to head in first - Seamus you open up holes for us. I will follow in after you both to disable any of their shit. Jack. We’re going to rely on you to keep an eye on terrorist movements. Radio about anything. Eye on the cameras and your scanner. Sebastien, we need your firepower to follow in close with Jack… Watch our six. Everyone, keep behind Gilles as much as you can to keep safe. We’re doing this for Anna.

“Mark, stay here with Gustave and help Morowa keep the area clear. Gustave, we’re not expecting to come out of here unscatched. Be ready. If too many of us go down, you and Mark get in here to get us back on our feet.” Mike pointed at both of them. Gustave and Mark nodded in response.   
  


“You should let me in there,” Morowa spat. “I’ll take those monsters out.”   
  
“You’re best out here. If they try to run, put them down.” Mike nodded to her. She puffed out her chest and snarled.   
  
“They  _ won’t _ get past me,” She growled, and went back to the line to secure the property.   
  
“Fils de pute, she scares me,” Sebastien muttered under his breath. Gilles snickered. They both turned their focus back to the map. Mike was marking down camera locations, locations of Anna and her mother, and asked for routing suggestions. Gilles took charge here and suggested a fairly straightforward way, with one detour to prevent flanking. Jack suggested one change and Mike agreed. With the plan in mind, they checked their gear one last time and approached the house.   
  
Mark hung back with Gustave and had his arms crossed. He didn’t like not being the one going in but he understood why it wasn’t him. Gustave put a hand on his shoulder, sensing his concern. “They’re good people. They’ll get her out.”   
  
“I know,” Mark shook off his hand and started pacing in the small tent that the police set up. He went to the opening and looked out to the police keeping guard along the outside of the property. Morowa was walking the line, keeping everyone motivated.  _ She’s crazy, but she’s good. _   
  
\-----

Sledge smashed open the doorway and Montagne took the place of the door with his shield drawn. An EMP was lobbed over the top of the shield and it rolled into the lobby, exploding and disableding two unseen nitro cells under the lobby desk. Two drones went in under Montagne’s feet to explore the area. Pulse chimed in that there were two people on the right, and three on the left. The drones peeked the corners and spotted the terrorists. Montagne proceeded in, followed by Thatcher and Sledge. He stopped at the far end of the lobby hall where the terrorists sat.

Montagne’s shield took some hits on the approach but Thatcher and Sledge took care of those White Masks quickly from behind his cover. Pulse relayed more location information. Sledge shot through the thin wall and took out two of them to the left. Thatcher took out the last to the right. The last terrorist to the left tried to get the jump on them, but Montagne slammed his shield into his head and he crumpled. The Team cleared the room.

“Situation upstairs is dissolving,” Pulse was on the cameras. “We need to move!”

Montagne braced behind his shield again and they followed their path, pressing forwards. Pulse got back on his heartbeat sensor and pinged them locations through the walls. They’ve taken out half of the known terrorists when a single gunshot was heard upstairs. White Masks flooded down the stairwells with their rifles aimed up. The Team aimed theirs back and engaged in the firefight.

——-

Four hours prior to infiltration:

Anna awoke from her head injury. Her vision was blurry, she was in pain, and she didn’t know where she was. She looked up and blinked away the fuzzies the best that she could. Immediately, her mind went into observation mode.

_ Handcuffed. Small room. Interrogation room? I’m at a long table with benches. Why benches? Large mirror on the left. Definitely an interrogation room. Injuries… head. Just head? I think so.  _ Anna tried to stand and stumbled a little. She flexed different parts of her body to test for pain and injuries but it seemed it was just her head. She immediately crouched and pulled the handcuffs under her, and around to the front.  _ Standard set. _ Still crouching, she looked under the table for any metal shard that she could use to pick the lock. Nothing. She patted herself down. Nothing.  _ They left me with nothing but clothes. _ She ran her hands over her hair, trying to recall if she put her pin there before they left and she did not.  _ Or they took that too. _

Anna heard the door getting unlocked so she ran over towards it and pressed herself against the wall beside the frame. A White Mask walked in and Anna threw her arms around his head, choking him with the chain on her handcuffs. He knelt down, and Anna was swiftly knocked to the side by another White Mask behind the first. She was kicked in the ribs and dragged back to the far side of the table and forced to sit down.

The first White Mask stood up, rubbed his neck, and pulled some paper and a pen out from his jacket. He set it down on the table in front of her. “You are going to write a letter to the British Prime Minister.”

Anna glared up at him, not responding, and not touching the materials. He walked around the table until he was beside her. He grabbed the pen and placed it in her hand. She dropped it. He returned it to her hand and held it there with a strong grip.

“We have your mother here, too. Don’t make us hurt her.” He spat.

Anna’s skin got a chill. She felt the blood run out of her face as he removed his hand from hers. She paused before dropping the pen again. He just breathed behind his mask. They stood there for a solid five minutes until the first nodded to the second and they left her alone in the room.

The door locked behind them and Anna sat in silence for 30 seconds. She grabbed the pen and unscrewed the cap for it, using the ink cartridge inside to pick the lock on her handcuffs. She approached the door, pen in hand, to examine the locks. She bit down on the non-metal end of the cartridge to flatten it until it could fit in the keyhole.  _ Thank fuck this pen is low on ink. _ She took the pen cap and pried the metal clip off of it. Biting to flatten and bend it, too, she used it to pick the door lock.  _ I need to figure out more about this place. I need to get out and back to the SAS! _

_ Click! _ The door unlatched. She carefully walked back to the table, grabbed the papers, lightly crumpled them, and returned to the door. She cracked it, and waited for retaliation. None came so she peeked her head out and saw some White Masks facing away from her down the hall. She laid the crumpled papers down on the floor, hoping that they would make noise if someone stepped on them. She reassembled the pen as best as she could and crept up to the White Mask. His vision of her was obscured by his hood. She got right up beside him, holding her breath. She pulled his hood back, and jammed the pen into his neck. He cried out and fell to the ground, trying to stop the blood flow.

Anna grabbed his dropped rifle and fired two shots into his chest. His hand fell limp from his throat to his lap. Two other White Masks came out from another room and Anna shot at them.  _ Stairs going down to the right. Looks like an isolated stairwell. What floor am I on? _ She kept her sights aimed at the door where she last saw the White Mask. She only got one of the terrorists.  _ Paper noise. _ She glanced over her left shoulder from the direction she came from and saw another terrorist approaching her. She dashed to the stairwell for cover and turned to fire at the one coming from the flank. She missed her shots and was grabbed from behind. She tussled, hoping to get loose but to no avail. The person slammed her head into the edge of the stair and she blacked out again.

Thirty minutes prior to infiltration:

Anna once again woke up in a daze.  _ They need to stop doing this. _ She tilted her head back, tasting blood on her lips and tongue. She blinked. Around her were familiar surroundings. On the table in front of her, she found fresh paper and a pen. She gathered up saliva in her mouth and spat it out all over the sheet, spraying blood with it. She threw the ruined pages to the floor around her. She tucked the pen behind her ear and just sat there.

Twenty minutes or so later, a White Mask entered the room with a second chair. He didn’t react to the papers on the floor. He just set the chair along the far wall, facing Anna, and then walked around to behind her. Another set of White Masks brought in a woman with a fabric bag over her head and sat her down roughly on the chair opposite to Anna.  _ Oh no… no, no, no… _

The White Mask ripped off the hood from the woman to reveal Julie Tremblay.  _ Mom, no… _ There was a small trickle of dried blood near her temple. Her auburn hair was disheveled and she looked exhausted. Anna kept her gaze down, trying not to react.

“Don’t do anything they ask of you,” Julie said. “No matter what.”

“Your mother is beautiful,” The White Mask beside Anna leaned in and whispered. “We have a C4 under that chair. If you don’t obey, all I need to do is press a little button.”


	42. Exfiltrate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mrs. Tremblay comes to realize she has lost her daughter again.

**Chapter Forty-Two - Exfiltrate**

**Cast:**

Annaliese “Quill” Audette

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Mike “Thatcher” Baker

James “Smoke” Porter

Seamus “Sledge” Cowden

Sebastien “Buck” Côté

Gilles “Montagne” Touré

Gustave “Doc” Kateb

Jack “Pulse” Estrada

Morowa “Clash” Evans

Mrs. Julie Tremblay

**Location:**

London, England

“You kill her, you lose all leverage over me. I don’t give a shit about my own life.” Anna said. The White Mask snapped his fingers and another one drew a knife on Julie, holding it up to her face.

“Death isn’t required,” The nearest terrorist replied. “We can just as easily carve her eyes out… or tongue… cut her ears or nose off. Whatever makes you tick. All you need to do is write a letter to the Prime Minister from the President of the United States. It’s simple, really.”

Anna didn’t reply. The White Mask with the knife dug the blade into Julie’s skin a little. Julie tried her best to be strong, but she was scared. Anna could see it plainly on her face.  _ I need to control this situation. I need to escape… _

Anna could hear sounds from downstairs. There was some yelling, and smashing noises. Some gunshots were heard. The White Mask with the knife sliced into Julie’s arm and she cried out in pain and fear. The White Mask behind Anna tapped the table. “Write. Now. Or else both of you will die.”

“I think we don’t have to do anything… I think you’re the ones about to lose.” Anna couldn’t stop the words before they slipped out.  _ Damn antagonizing. _ More gun shots sounded from downstairs. The White Mask behind Anna grunted and pulled out his pistol, aiming it at Julie.

“Write the letter!” He screamed in Anna’s ear. Anna shook her head. The White Mask loaded a bullet into the chamber and turned his attention to Julie. Anna knew his panic and saw him tense. In a flash, Anna reached up with her right hand and covered the muzzle with her palm, pushing the gun slightly to the right. The White Mask pulled the trigger without realizing what Anna had done.

The White Mask to Julie’s left fell to the ground with a round in his abdomen. Anna felt adrenaline rush through her body as she went into shock. She looked down at her mangled hand. Two fingers were missing, and everything was red. It looked like her palm was split down the middle to her wrist. She looked at her mom. Julie’s face was panicked and focused only on Anna. Anna looked down at the table and realized that it was her blood and bone fragments all over the surface.

The White Mask beside her yelled out in anger and shoved Anna to the floor. Pain screamed through her arm and up into her shoulder. The White Mask pointed his pistol at her and loosed two bullets into Anna’s chest. He flipped back to Julie and shot her in the shoulder. He was about to shoot a second time when Sledge knocked the door in and Thatcher took him out. Buck proceeded into the room and shot the remaining terrorist beside Julie.

“Shit!” Thatcher ran around to the far side of the table where Anna laid covered in blood. Buck grabbed Julie and prevented her from running over. Pulse shot once to ensure the last terrorist with the bullet in his gut was dead. Pulse turned his attention to Julie, talking to her trying to get her to focus on him instead.   
  
Thatcher radioed to Gustave outside for them both to come to the second floor. Thatcher yelled over his shoulder for Buck and Pulse to get Mrs Tremblay out of the building. Montagne went into the hall, protecting them from a flank with his shield. The group from inside crossed paths with the group from the outside on the stairs. Doc stopped them and administered one of his stim shots to Mrs Tremblay.   
  
“Save her! Save my daughter!” Mrs Tremblay called out to them. Mute’s heart was in his throat but he kept focused. His eyes darting to doorways, halls, gates, holes, anything where a threat may present itself. The two of them proceeded upstairs and found Thatcher and Sledge stabilizing Anna’s body. Once Doc got to work on her, Thatcher, Sledge, and Montagne proceeded to clear out the rest of the building, taking out any remaining White Masks. Mute crouched vigilantly at the door, protecting his teammate and girlfriend. He tried to ignore the gurgling breaths she took as Doc worked to stop the blood from pouring out. Two hypodermic shots were given to her to slow the bleeding. Her breathing was still gurgling, but her body stopped shaking.

Doc quickly pinched off some of arteries and veins in her hand and bandaged it up. He turned his attention to the bullet wounds in her chest and inspected them to approximate their trajectory to estimate internal damage. He seemed confident that his needles would hold for those for now and radioed to Sebastien that he would need to get Anna to a surgery immediately and to ask Morowa to direct the ambulance in. Doc received confirmation from Sebastien outside and he just knelt beside Anna. He put his hand on her shoulder to comfort his unconscious patient.   
  
Mute sat in the doorway, watching and listening down both ends of the hallway. Thatcher radioed to them all. “We got them all but we’re going to do one final sweep to confirm.”   
  
“Mon ami, how are you holding up?” Doc called out to Mute. He merely looked behind him into the room and back out to the hallway. Doc sighed. “I think she’ll be okay. I’m going to take her into surgery as soon as I can get cleaned up and I will fix her… even if it takes all night.”   
  
Mute didn’t reply. He only waited for a radio call. It came from Montagne. “Building is clear. Returning to the office upstairs.” Mark immediately stood up and ran to Anna’s side. He snatched his mask off and cupped her cheek in his hand. His face was calm but his eyes intense. Mike and Seamus gave the paramedics the ‘all clear’ to enter and guided them up the stairs to where Anna lay. Gilles was waiting outside of the door in case they needed help. Mark and Gustave stood and took a step back to allow the paramedics in to move Anna to the gurney.   
  
Everything was happening so fast. Mark and Gustave followed them downstairs and jumped in the ambulance to the hospital, fully armed. Mike, Seamus, and Gilles met with Sebastien, Jack, and Julie down at the tent. Various police officers were around writing their reports, talking to Julie about what happened. She kept asking about Anna and where they were taking her, would she be alright, when can she see her? Jack put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.   
  
\-----

Three days later, Jack and Mike went to visit Julie in the hospital in London. She was laying on her bed in a private room after getting a procedure to remove the bullet from her shoulder. Her arm was in a sling.   
  
“You! Where is Anna? No one has told me anything!” Julie said, recognizing Jack.   
  
Jack took a seat in the chair nearby. “That’s what I’m here for now, actually. Anna’s injuries were extensive and the surgery suites here couldn’t handle her level of trauma. She was taken by helicopter to the military hospital in Hereford where she was operated on by doctors that specialize in acute physical trauma like hers. They lost her twice during surgery. They couldn’t revive her after the third time. Ma’am, I’m so sorry. Your daughter has died. They did everything that they could to bring her back but it wasn’t enough.”

“I don’t believe you,” Julie shook her head. “My Anna is so strong. Something like this could not have killed her. She’s been through so much already! She… she… I refuse to lose her again. You must be lying! You can’t do this to me! I only just… just got her back.”   
  
“Ma’am, I’m truly sorry for your loss. Anna is dead…” Jack spoke softly. Mike opened a file folder he was carrying and pulled out some paperwork. He handed a death certificate over, signed by Dr. Gustave Kateb marking the place, date, time, manner, and cause of death. Julie took it and she started to shake.    
  
“I only just got her back… You… No…” She put the paper down and covered her mouth. Tears fell quickly from her eyes. Jack and Mike remained there silently. They knew this wouldn't be easy. Mark already took a month leave from both the Regiment and Rainbow to handle things, but telling a parent about the death of a child is painful.   
  
“Sebastien and I will escort you back to Canada. We will get you to CFB Trenton where he can coordinate a flight to get you closer to wherever you need to get to.” Jack kept his soft tone of voice. “We will need clearance from the doctors here to have you fly. We will be taking a private jet to ensure no other attacks happen to-”   
  
“I want to see my daughter’s body.” Julie looked up to him with a desperate stare. “I need to see for myself that she is… gone.”   
  
“Ma’am, that’s not possible,” Mike spoke. “She is several hours drive from here. I assure you that her death has been confirmed. Legally in the UK, a doctor doesn’t even need to be the one to confirm the death. Gustave wanted it to be him though. That’s how they do it in France. He was rather fond of Anna.”   
  
“Fond…? How did he know her?” Julie shifted.   
  
“Ma’am, we all knew Anna.” Jack spoke again. “We all were fond of her.” Julie sat in silence, tears streaking down her face. Mike grabbed a tissue box and brought it to her on the bed where Julie promptly took one and wiped her eyes.   
  
“Anna was dating one of our SAS men. He loved her more than the rest of us. She also bought a house here in England. She worked for the Queen on the Royal Collection…” Mike continued.   
  
“That’s where I saw her,” Julie nodded.   
  
“You know why she was there that day? The night before there was a charity art auction for an education fund. The princesses requested her there personally to entice buyers. I was there for security of the event. She looked… like she was in her element. She even got to dance with a Norwegian Prince if you would believe it.” Mike nodded. “She was preparing the art pieces to be shipped out. They raised two million euros because of her. Anna was a lovely girl. She really was.”

  
“I was the first person on the team that she spoke to. She was hesitant but professional. Clever, too.” Jack rubbed his hands together. “She also did some training with us. We wanted to make sure she would be okay out in the world on her own. She did well, but her heart was never in it. She was an artist and nothing would change that. But she showed us a lot of spirit. We owe a lot to her. She protected our countries, our citizens, before we even knew her name. We’re not going to forget that.”   
  
“Thank you,” Julie wiped away more tears. “That’s more of a life than I could ever have hoped for for her… She always wanted to work on the Royal Collection. I’m proud of that. I knew her talents would lead her to England… And that boy from the Social group. Oh, what was his name? Mitch? Martin? Something like that. He was British I think. Bright boy. I wonder if they ever met up.”   
  
Mike and Jack didn’t reply. Julie sighed deeply and looked at the death certificate. She hugged the paper and started tearing up again. “May I have a moment alone?”   
  
“Of course, ma’am.” Mike and Jack left the room to give her some privacy.


	43. Flowers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Conclusion to Anna's story and the healing that goes along with it.

**Chapter Forty-Three - Flowers**

**Cast:**

Mark R “Mute” Chandar

Analia Chandar

**Location:**

London, England

Mark closed his car door after pulling into the City of London Cemetery. His passenger got out slowly and watched him sigh.   
  
“I know this is hard for you.”   
“I know, but it’s closure.”   
  
Mark shifted the bouquet of flowers in his hands and the pair walked over the grass carefully, silently to a freshly buried plot.   
  
“I can’t believe Annaliese got a plot so close to the gardens. We should walk through there after this.”   
“We can do that.”   
  
They stood there in a moment of silence before Mark knelt down and placed the flowers at the foot of the granite headstone. It read:   
  
Annaliese Audette   
Fighter, Lover, Artist   
1992-2020   
  
Mark stood up, sighed again. “This is weird.”   
  


“It’s weirder when I do it. I’m the one that is supposed to be buried there.” The woman spoke. “Rest in peace, Annaliese. You went through a lot. You accomplished even more than that, though. I loved you, but it’s time for us to move on to bigger and better things.”   
  
Mark looked over to her before grabbing her left hand in his. “I love you.”   
  
“I love you, too. Thank you for doing this with me.”   
“I’ll always be here for you, Anna.”   
  
Anna looked up to him and smiled. He kissed her forehead and they walked over towards the gardens to look at the flowers. They wandered quietly for a bit. Anna scratched her stump where her right hand had been. Gustave said that there was too much damage to the vascular system to keep the remaining two fingers, and he wasn’t about to just leave her with a thumb.

Mark told her about all the people at Team Rainbow that were designing and building her a prosthetic hand. They were using new technology and sensors to allow her a little bit of ‘feeling’ from the fingertips. Gustave will have to perform another surgery to arrange the nerves in her arm to align with the sensors in the hand. At first, she refused, but Mark wouldn’t allow it. They wanted to do this for her, and it gave them something to work on apart from training. It was a team building project as well.   
  
“Have you decided on a name, then?” Mark asked her.   
  
“I’ve narrowed it down to either Anastastia, or Analia. Both could be shortened to ‘Anna’.” She replied. “I would need to figure out a surname and see which first name fits better.”   
  
“You could consider ‘Chandar’.” Mark suggested.   
  
“We just stepped away from my grave, and you’re asking me to marry you?” Anna blinked up at him, stunned.   
  
“Not yet, but you should take it into consideration.” He smirked without looking at her. Anna laughed and braced her chest.   
  
“Ow, laughing still hurts. Those shots really were too close to my lungs.” Anna took some slow deep breaths. Mark pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head.   
  


“I knew this was going to be too much for you. Gustave told you that you needed more time for bed rest to heal fully.”   
“When is that ever my style?”   
  
Mark looked at her with concern.   
  
“Anastasia Chandar. Analia Chandar.” Anna continued. “It’s a tough call. What do you think?”   
  
“Analia is pretty,” Mark nodded. “Analia ‘Quill’ Chandar.”   
  
“Analia it is. But I’m going to choose a different last name. You don’t get me to have yours by default. If you want to marry me, I’m going to make you work for it.” Anna joked with a grin.   
  
“Fine,” Mark grinned back. “Would you say yes, though?”   
  
“Mmm… let me think about it.” Anna started walking back to the car with a smirk.

  
“You can’t do that to me,” Mark called after her. She merely lifted her hand and waved him off. He scoffed and followed suit. Anna ran her fingers over the headstone one last time before proceeding to the car. Mark locked it on her so she was forced to wait on him. He leaned on the roof of the car and looked at her. “Would you marry me if I asked?”   
  
Anna stared at him, but he was patient. She tried to keep a straight face but broke into a smile and blushed. He smirked and unlocked the car. They both climbed in and Mark drove them out of the cemetery and back towards their house in North Duffield.

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer:  
> This is a work of fiction. None of the events outlined above are true to the best of my knowledge. These situations are hypothetical only and are not meant to be understood as actual threats or warnings of impending violence. This work of fiction is my own.


End file.
